Thanks to Tali
by mama's-broken-heart
Summary: It's been a year since Tony and Tali reunited with Ziva in Paris and have since been living as a happy family. Now, they're back in DC for McGee's wedding and Tony takes the opportunity to do something he should have done years ago. -Inspired by a Tumblr post I made-
1. You Came and Proved Me Wrong

_**You Came and Proved Me Wrong**_

 _It's been a year since Tony and Tali reunited with Ziva in Paris. They've been living a happy family life with occasional visits from Sr. They travel to DC for McGee's wedding where afterwards, with Gibbs and Senior watching Tali, Tony takes Ziva to the doorstep of the hotel where they had pizza and espresso in the rain and their first conversation about Tali David. He pulls her under the awning and, just as the rain starts to come down, he gets on one knee holding his mother's ring out to her and utters the question that, just last year, he never thought he'd get to ask. –_ I made this post today on Tumblr and it inspired this drabble that I put together in 3 hours (a record for me) and is the first thing I've written in 5 months.

 **May, 2017**

"Tony, Ziva, Tali, thanks for coming."  
"We would not miss this for the world Tim." With Tali on her hip, Ziva leaned in to give the new groom a hug.

Tony reached over to pat his friends back. "I'm glad we could make it McGroom." Ziva lightly tapped him on the shoulder while McGee just shook his head and laughed, grateful to have two of his best friends and their daughter here, alive, and in DC for his wedding day.

At Tali's squirming, Ziva sat the girl down, kissing Tim on the cheek and squeezing Tony's bicep before following the girl to where Abby, Gibbs, and Senior were conversing in the kitchen. Once she was out of earshot, Tim asked Tony what he'd been dying to ask him all evening.

"So Tony, is tonight the night?"

Tony smiled, tapping his suit jacket pocket. "Yep. Senior and Gibbs are watching Tali. I'm taking Ziva back to the hotel. It's supposed to rain. It's gonna be perfect Tim."

"Well I'm happy for you Tony. Asking Delilah to marry me was the best decision I've ever made. You guys are gonna be so happy. And I must say, it was a long time coming"

He shook his head and laughed, knowing that this should have happened years ago: before Bodnar and Parson's investigation, before they resigned, before he spent a summer trying to find her in Israel only to spend one amazing night together and making the hardest 180 of his life, before spending 2 years without her in his life, and before he thought she was dead (again) and had only Tali to hold onto before putting the pieces together and meeting her in Paris where they've spent the last wonderful year of their lives. "Yeah well, what can I say Tim. I love her and I'm a moron for waiting this long."

"Can't argue with that DiNozzo." Tim laughed before hugging Tony, nodding behind them when Senior came up to them, slapping his son on the back. McGee took that opportunity to find Delilah who was more likely than not getting her ears talked off by Abby.

"Congratulations Tim. Son, are you ready?"

"Yeah dad, I think I am. You've got Tali?"

"Her bag is in my car and we're ready to go to Gibbs for the evening and then I'll take her back to my place for the night."

"Thanks dad, I owe you one."

Senior smiled, pulling Tony into a side hug and loudly whispering "I'll take another granddaughter."

Tony gulped, his tie feeling tighter, but then smiled at the thought of the joy another little girl would bring into his life. "Not so fast dad, let's get tonight over with first and go from there."

Senior only laughed and then nudged his son when Ziva came back into the room.

"Ziva my dear." Senior greeted her, kissing her cheek and pulling her in for a hug.

"Senior, thank you for taking Tali tonight. She is very excited to spend time with you and Gibbs and it has been so long since Tony and I have gotten time to ourselves."

"No need to thank me my dear, it's my pleasure. It's not every day I get to spend time with my only granddaughter." He assured her, stressing the only as he had been doing a lot lately since Tony and Ziva had talked about visiting the states more often. "Well, we better get going so we can have some play time before getting the little munchkin to bed." He walked into the kitchen and picked up a squealing Tali, heading for the door while Gibbs grabbed Tali's other bag. The two men said goodnight as Tali waved, blowing kisses to her parents as they threw "I love yous" to their baby.

"Well sweetcheeks, are you ready to head out too?"

"Yes, let me just say goodnight to Abby. And how many times have I told you not to call me that in public?"

Tony looked sheepish as he followed Ziva into the other room as they said goodnight to the remaining guests before exiting the apartment hand in hand.

"Is it weird, Tony, to see McGee living in your old place." Ziva questioned as they got onto the elevator, prepared to head back to their hotel.

"I thought it would be weird, ya know, to be back in the place I lived for 13 years when someone else is living there but then I realized it was never really home." At her questioning look, he exaggerated, "A friend once told me that home isn't a place, it's in the smiles and laughter of those they love. You're my home Ziva, you and Tali."

Overcome with emotion, Ziva pulled him to her and kissed him then, cursing when the elevator doors opened and wishing they we're back in the elevator at NCIS so they could hit the off switch and stay in there forever. They pulled away, Tony leading them out the doors and into the waiting cab. Once they got to their destination, they paid the driver and ran up to the doors as they heard thunder rolling in. As they got under the awning, the rain came pouring down and Tony pulled her to him, stopping her from entering the building.

She looked at him puzzled for a second as he started talking about their daughter Tali and pizza and espresso before recognition dawned on her face. "Tony, this is the same hotel you followed me to 11 years ago, is it not."

Tony dipped his head and chuckled. "I tell ya, you can take the girl out of Mossad."

Ziva just smiled and shook her head. "You are forgetting I was last NCIS."

He leaned down, touching his forehead to hers, whispering "how could I forget" before kissing her gently.

When they pulled away, Tony had a sparkle in his eye and decided it was time to do what he came here to do.

"Ziva, I uh, I booked us at this hotel for a reason. It's where we had our first real conversation. Where you first talked about your sister Tali. And it was the first time I thought 'man, there's something special about this woman.' I didn't know it at the time just how special you would be in my life. We've been through a lot over 11 years Ziva, but I wouldn't trade it for anything because it brought us our beautiful daughter Tali and it finally brought us together. I still feel like there's something missing though Ziva and I finally figured out what that was." Ziva looked at him with curious eyes as he held her hand before starting to kneel down on one knee. Ziva gasped, pulling her free hand up to cover her mouth as she saw what was happening. "I love you Ziva." He reached into his interior suit pocket, pulling out a ring which Ziva immediately recognized as his mothers. "Ziva David, will you marry me?"

With tears streaming down her face, ones that Tony hoped and prayed were happy tears, Ziva slowly nodded, a string of yes's spilling from her mouth with increasing volume. Tony slowly slipped the ring on her finger and stood, cupping her face with his hands. "Yes?"

"Yes Tony, I will marry you, of course." With his hands slipping into her hair and hers sliding their way around his back, this kiss was reminiscent of the one they had on an Israeli tarmac almost 4 years ago, only this one held promise. Promise of a bright future. A future together.

 _**The line "I love her (and) I'm a moron" was inspired by a line in Scorpion (2x24) - Walter O'Brien. The part about a person's home being in smiles and laughter was loosely based on a line from NCIS: LA in 6.16. "You're my home" was borrowed from Scorpion 3.23. Each of these borrowed lines are from my other favorite ships so I had to incorporate them into this fic._


	2. What a Sweet Surprise

What a Sweet Surprise

 _I hadn't planned on making a follow-up, but then this happened._

 _***I originally posted this as another story to follow up to the "Thanks to Tali" which was intended to be a one-shot… I kinda wrote more than I planned so this is now a multi-chapter fic._

 _ **November 4, 2018**_

"Good morning, my little hairy butt." Ziva purred into her husband's ear, rubbing circles over his bare back as she was propped up on one elbow, leaning over her husband of one year.

"Mmmm. Good morning sweetcheeks." Tony turned on his side, leaning up to meet Ziva half way. He pressed his lips firmly to hers and Ziva quickly returned the kiss, opening her mouth and pressing her tongue against his lips to deepen it. What started as their customary good morning kiss quickly turned passionate and Tony pulled his wife on top of him, ready for an encore of last night's activities. When air became a necessity, the couple pulled away reluctantly, looking at each other with heated gazes as they tried to catch their breath. "Happy anniversary Ziva."

"Happy anniversary Tony." There was a light breeze blowing through the open windows and the sun was beating down through the palms, filling their ocean bungalow with warmth.

"Can you believe we've been married for a year Zi? It seems like just yesterday I was asking you to marry me and now were here, in the Bahamas, a week to ourselves." Tony spoke slowly in between kisses placed on his wife's face and neck while rubbing his hands up and down her arms.

Ziva moaned in appreciation of her husband's actions. "It has been a good year, has it not?"

They both thought back to the last year and a half since Tony proposed, followed by their short 6-month engagement, both too impatient to wait any longer than necessary. _They had a small outdoor ceremony in DC with Senior, Tali, and their NCIS family in attendance. Ziva looked radiant in her off-white, long-sleeved chiffon gown, matching Tali's who acted as their flower girl. Their two-week-long honeymoon was spent traveling around the world to Israel, Berlin, and Spain, even spending some time in California, making new memories in places once visited by them for a case only. Senior met them in Paris with Tali where they settled into married life seamlessly. They stayed in Paris for 5 more months before deciding they missed their family and wanted to raise Tali in America, wanting to move back to the DC area before Tali would start preschool. After much deliberation, and investigation into the school systems, the parents decided to move to a quaint home in Rockville, Maryland, in early May. Bi-weekly dinners with Senior and their NCIS family quickly became their norm throughout the summer. Ziva began teaching English as a second language classes at the community center and Tony decided to become a basketball coach for the local little league team while Tali began preschool in the fall and started spending her Friday nights with either Senior or Gibbs to give her parents time alone. To surprise his wife, Tony booked them a week-long vacation in the Bahamas to celebrate their one-year anniversary while Tali stayed with her grandfather._

"It certainly has. And I wouldn't trade it for the world."

Ziva rolled off of her husband, snuggling into his side and splaying her hand across his chest and running her fingers through his chest hair while Tony's arm came around her shoulder, clasping her free hand in his. "Neither would I. I am glad we moved back to America. I forgot how much it felt like home."

"Me too. I kinda missed being close to everyone, although I'm glad we kept our flat in Paris so we can go back anytime we want."

"Maybe we could take Tali back for her fifth birthday in a couple months, to celebrate."

"That's true, Paris in May is pretty spectacular." He said dreamily, thinking of walking down the streets of Paris with his little family, Tali taking in the sights with Ziva by his side.

Ziva hummed lightly, tapping Tony's chest. "I was thinking maybe February would be a better time to go."

"But it's cold in Paris in February, plus it won't even be Tali's birthday yet." Tony whined, not yet understanding why Ziva wanted to go that early in the year.

"Yes, but, it is close enough. Plus it may be the last time we can go back for a while."

"Wait, I don't understand. Why wouldn't we be able to go back for a while?"

Ziva just rolled her eyes, tired of dropping hints that her husband obviously wasn't catching on to. She sat up, pulling the sheet against her chest, wanting to see Tony's face when she told him the news. "Tony, I am pregnant."

Tony looked at her in shock, his eyes wide and mouth open. Ziva couldn't keep the smile off of her face as she watched him process the information he was just given. A smile slowly started to spread across his face that rivaled hers. "You're preg, pregnant?"

"Yes. I just found out last week, I believe to be about a month along, although my doctor's appointment next week will confirm. I am positive I am right though, I was with Tali."

"You're pregnant. You're, we're really pregnant?" He looked up at her with such joy on his face that made Ziva wish this was the second time she had gotten to see his reaction. She shut that thought down quickly, knowing it was water under the bridge and instead she just nodded, tears filling her eyes that she tried to keep at bay. The tears spilled over though as Tony reached up to caress her face tenderly, placing a passionate kiss on her lips. He could taste the salt on her lips from the happy tears streaming down her face. When they pulled away, Ziva reached up and rubbed her thumb under his eye, wiping away tears he hadn't known were there. "We're having a baby." Ziva just smiled and nodded, placing her forehead against hers.

"Yes. We're having a baby Tony. And we're doing it together this time."

"Together, I like that. I want to be there for everything Ziva. The appointments, the morning sickness, the cravings, and the most important part, the delivery. I'm not missing anything."

"Good. Because I want you there for everything. Although you may regret saying that later. With Tali I had the weirdest cravings. And I do not know why they call it 'morning sickness' when it does not just happen in the morning! It lasted throughout the entire last 4 months before."

Tony grimaced but squeezed her hand. "I promise Zi, I'll be there for anything you need." Ziva kissed him again, gently this time, before laying back down. Tony's hand reached over to touch her stomach, marveling at the fact that there was a child growing inside of her, the child that they made.

"You know Tony, 10 years ago I never would have believed you if you told me this is where my life would be. I never thought I wanted to be married, let alone be a mother. I guess life just, just has a way of, of showing you what you were made to be. And now I know that this is what I am supposed to be, a wife and a mother, and I would not want to be anything else. I love this life that I have Tony and I am so glad it is you with whom I am sharing it with. I love you."

"I love you too Ziva. And I love you too little one, I can't wait to meet you." Tony leaned down and kissed her belly, imagining what a pregnant Ziva will look like.

"Are you imagining me pregnant?"

"Um, yes?"

"Good."

 _*Disclaimer: The characters belong to CBS, I just borrowed them._

 _**Title & last Ziva paragraph inspired by "What I Never Knew I Always Wanted" by Carrie Underwood_

 _***Ending inspired by Tony and Ziva's conversation in "Undercovers"_


	3. Underneath the Tree

**Underneath the Tree**

 _Because I had to include a chapter in which they tell Tali and Senior:_

 _ **December 25, 2018**_

"Ima, Abba, wake up it's Christmas!" Tali exclaimed, rushing into her parents' bedroom at precisely 6:30 am and jumping on the bed between them.

"Good morning motek." Ziva mumbled, still half a sleep and no longer used to waking early. Her daughter, however, took after her old habits. While a normally late sleeper, Tony was just like a kid when it came to waking early on Christmas morning. Knowing her would be awake, Ziva pressed a kiss to her daughter's arm before rolling back over and going back to sleep, still tired from waking from morning sickness an hour before.

"Merry Christmas Tali!" Tony pulled her down into a hug before tickling her. Tali immediately began squealing and kicking. "Shhh tesoro," he whispered, "let's let Ima sleep okay. C'mon, we'll make breakfast okay?"

"Okay Abba." Tali nodded, smiling. Tony picked her up, swinging her off the bed and into the kitchen, sitting her down on the island while he got out ingredients for blueberry pancakes, one of Ziva's latest cravings. "Daddy, can I pour in the blueberries?"

"Of course you can." Tony kissed her forehead. After living in America for over half a year, Tali had started calling him daddy more often, although Ziva was always Ima to her. Tony measured and poured the pancake mix into the bowl and instructed Tali to pour in the blueberries before adding milk (Tali swore milk made them better than water) and stirring the batter together. Tali wanted to help with the stirring as well so he let her take over, standing back a little as he knew she was going to make a mess. After a minute of stirring, Tali started getting tired so Tony took over, finishing getting all of the lumps out. He picked Tali up and carried her back into his and Ziva's bed, placing her next to her mother who she immediately curled up to. Tony went back into the kitchen and finished making breakfast, cleaning Tali's (and his) mess. 30 minutes later, Tony walked into their bedroom carrying a plate full of pancakes, 2 cups of milk, and his much needed coffee. The family ate breakfast in bed and, after finished, were led by Tali into the living room and sat in front of the Christmas tree which was twinkling in the corner. The video camera had already been sat up to catch all of Tali's reactions as she opened each toy and item of clothing. Tony and Ziva exchanged gifts while Tali was distracted with her Moana dress-up set. Once Tali calmed down, Tony and Ziva silently decided that it was the right time to tell her. "Tali baby, come here. Ima and I have one more present for you."

"But there's no more under the tree daddy," Tali looked at him with her head tilted, looking exactly like her mother when she got confused by the English language.

Ziva laughed and pulled a bag out from behind her back. "That is because it is right here." Tali sat down in front of her parents as Ziva sat the bag in front of her. She excitedly pulled out all of the paper and reached down into the bag, pulling out a shirt with print on the front. "Do you know what it says Tali?"

Tali concentrated hard on the shirt, sounding it out in her head before trying it out loud. "Big sister?"

"Do you know what that means Tali?" Tali shook her head at her father, looking to her mother for clarification.

"It means," Ziva started as she looked at Tony and grabbed his hand, "that we are having another baby. You are going to have a little brother or sister."

"Is that like how Victoria has baby Charles?" Tali asked, referencing to Jimmy and Breena's daughter Victoria and their five-month-old son Charles.

"Yes, Victoria is Charles' big sister, just like you will be to this baby." Ziva touched her belly. Tony and Tali both followed her lead, all of them with smiles on their faces.

"Does that mean I get to play with the baby?"

"Well not yet sweetie. First he has to grow in Ima's tummy and will have to get bigger than baby Charles and that will take a long time. But, when he is out of my tummy, you can hold him and help Ima and Abba."

"Okay Ima." Tali easily accepted Ziva's answer and cuddled up to her side for a minute, then jumped up. "Can we go to grandpas now?" Tony and Ziva just laughed, Tony choosing to pick up the wrapping paper and boxes from the living room while Ziva got Tali ready to go to his fathers.

* * *

"Merry Christmas my dears!" Senior welcomed them in, giving hugs and kisses all around. He took Tony and Ziva's coats as Tali threw hers off and ran straight to the Christmas tree, placing her grandfather's gift under the tree and sitting down, ready to start opening presents as the adults watched and laughed "Well it sure looks like someone's in a hurry."

"Oh you have no idea."

"Yeah dad, she came and woke us up at 6:30 by bouncing on the bed."

"Hmm, sounds like someone else I know on Christmas morning." Ziva said as she gave a side look to her husband. "Those are the times I know she is her father's child."

"Ha. Ha." Tony stuck his tongue out at Ziva, smirking as she reciprocated.

"Now now Junior, you were just like that as a child. I think the latest you ever let your mother and I sleep on Christmas morning was 6:00 am. You always were excited to open presents. Does she at least let you make breakfast first?" Tony looked sheepish as he responded.

"Well yeah. I guess that's the Ziva in her." He looked at his wife, pulling her into a side hug and kissing the top of her head.

"Of course I never celebrated Christmas until Tali was born, so there was never any reason for me to wake up early on December 25th. And you know how I like my breakfast."

"Ima, Abba, Nonno! Come on. It's time to open presents!"

Tony, Ziva, and Senior filed into the living room and sat around Tali. Senior handed Tali present after present, each of which she opened with surprise and enthusiasm. After Tali had opened all of her presents, she looked at her parents expectantly. At their approval, she grabbed Senior's present she had placed under the tree earlier and run up to him. "Merry Christmas Nonno."

"Ah, thank you sweetie." He said hugging Tali before looking at her parents. "You guys really didn't need to get me anything."

"I know dad but, just open it."

Senior slowly opened the neatly wrapped package, obviously Ziva's handiwork, and pulled out three boxes, numbered in the order he was supposed to open them. The first box held an ornament with a picture of Tony and Ziva on their wedding day. The second was a clear ornament that, inside, held a baby picture and recent picture of Tali. Another clear ornament with a picture on the inside was pulled out of the last box, placed just where he only saw the back of the photo. Expecting it to be a photo of the family of three, he was shocked when he turned it around and saw a sonogram dated one week ago. He looked up at Tony and Ziva, back down at the ornament, and back up at them before he could form words. "Are you serious? You're pregnant? You're having another baby?"

The parents just smiled and nodded. "Merry Christmas Dad."

"Merry Christmas guys, Merry Christmas indeed."

 _**Title inspired by Kelly Clarkson's "Underneath the Tree"_

 _Thank you all SO much for all of the kind reviews! They make me happy and help motivate me to write and write faster!_


	4. For Auld Lang Syne

**For Auld Lang Syne**

 _All of my chapter titles are song titles or lyrics that inspired the chapter. Well, this is a New Year's chapter and there aren't exactly many New Year's songs out there so "Auld Lang Syne" it is (which loosely means "for old times' sake" so it kinda goes with the chapter.)_

 _Sorry for the delay on this chapter, my cyst on my wrist flared up which made it hard to type._

 _**As you can tell in this chapter, I still love the idea of Gibbs being like a father to Ziva and a grandfather to Tali. Also, I haven't watched NCIS since Weatherly left and, therefore, do not know the new characters and would not do justice in writing them or Bishop which is why they are absent in this story. If you don't like that, you won't miss anything important if you skip this chapter, but, if you read it, please don't get mad that they are not present._

 _ **December 31, 2018/January 1, 2019**_

It was their first New Year's Eve since moving back to the US so Abby demanded they all celebrate together with a party at Gibbs house to watch the ball drop. While he would have protested before, Gibbs easily agreed, just happy to have his family back in one place again. They were set me meet Ducky, Abby, and the Palmer and McGee families at Gibbs house at 10:30 pm. One of the bedrooms was set up for the four kids to sleep in while their parents celebrated in the living room. Tony can Ziva decided to go over to Gibbs house early to let Tali spend time with her other grandfather and give him their latest news.

"Ima, Abba, can we go to grampa Gibbs now?" Tali whined for the fifth time in the last thirty minutes, always impatient to get to see the man who became a grandfather to her.

"Soon motek, let Abba and I finish packing the food and we shall go." At her mother's response, Tali settled down and went back to playing by the door. Tony walked up behind Ziva, snaking his arms around her waist and placing a kiss on her cheek.

"So, are you ready to tell Gibbs?" Ziva pressed back against Tony, reveling in his embrace and tilting her head to the side to receive a kiss on the neck.

"Mmm. I believe so. Besides, I want to tell them all before I start showing, which was around 4 months with Tali, and everyone will be together tonight anyways. I just hope he is happy for us."

"You know Gibbs, he'll be ecstatic. He's gonna love having another grandchild to spoil."

"That is true. He does love spoiling Tali and the others. I am so glad we moved back Tony, especially now that we are adding to our family."

"Me too, Zi, me too." Ziva turned around in her husband's arms, circling hers around his waist and laying her head on his chest. Tony looked down as he felt something collide with his leg to find Tali joining in their little family hug. He picked her up and each of the parents put an arm around her, holding her level with them.

"Can we go now?" Tali asked as her parents looked up, chuckling at her persistence. Tony kissed her cheek, picking her up fully and swinging her around.

"Go get your shoes on and wait by the door and Ima and I will be there in just a minute, okay tesoro?"

"Okay daddy!" Tali ran to the couch where she had taken her shoes off after the first "not yet" she had been told and pulled them on hurriedly, racing to stand by the door. Tony and Ziva grabbed their dishes they offered to bring both for their dinner with Gibbs and their horderves for the New Year's party and ushered Tali out the door and into their car.

The David-DiNozzo family arrived at Gibbs' house promptly at 5:00 pm. As soon as her door was opened, Tali made a mad dash to the front door and burst in, racing to Gibbs who was getting the steaks ready for the fireplace.

"Grampa Gibbs!" Gibbs squatted down, preparing himself for Tali's tackle hugs. Tony and Ziva came through the door at that moment, arms laden with bags of food, toys, and Tali's clothes as she was spending the night with Gibbs. Tali let go of Gibbs and went to get her bag from her mother, taking it upstairs in what was deemed her room not long after she declared Gibbs her grandfather. Tony took the food into the kitchen and put it away while Ziva sat her bags down by the stairs.

"Ziver, long time no see. How are you?" Gibbs pulled her into a tight but brief hug.

"I am good Gibbs. Just busy with teaching and of course Tali is in preschool now but only for 2 days a week so life has been hectic."

"Hey, what about me?" Tony called as he walked into the living room. "I've been teaching too ya know." Ziva just smiled and patted his stomach as he came over next to her.

"Yes Tony, but I do not think teaching basketball is quite the same as teaching English as a second language to children." Tony shook Gibbs hand then, watching him smirk.

"She got ya there DiNozzo."

Tony just smiled and changed the direction of the conversation. The three of them walked into the kitchen to finish putting together supper. When everything was done and on the table, Ziva called Tali down from upstairs and they spent a peaceful half hour digging into Gibbs famous steaks, salad, potato casserole, and bread made fresh that morning by Ziva. After they finished eating and leftovers were put away, the adults moved onto the couch while Tali sat in the floor, playing with the toys Gibbs had made her for Christmas.

Gibbs noticed Ziva's nervousness and Tony's constant glances at his wife and knew something was up. "Okay. What's going on with you two?" The couple looked at one another and had one of their famous silent conversations before agreeing now was the right time to spill the beans.

"Well Gibbs, we are uh. We are pregnant." Tony clasped her hand in his lap for support while they waited for Gibbs to say something, anything than just that blank, unreadable stare.

"How far along Ziver?"

"Um, a little over 3 months. I will be 14 weeks on Thursday."

After what seemed like forever, a smile broke out onto his face and Tony and Ziva breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm happy for you Ziver. Congratulations you two." Gibbs stood up and hugged Ziva, kissing the side of her head before letting go and surprising Tony with a quick hug. He then leaned down to where Tali was playing and picked her up in a hug. "So I hear you're gonna be a big sister Tali."

Tony and Ziva stood there and listened to Tali ramble on and on about being a big sister and the baby that is in her mommy's tummy to Gibbs who was listening intently.

A few hours later at 9:30, Abby and Ducky showed up, followed shortly by Tim, Delilah, and their baby, and then the Palmers and their two children. Shortly after, the four children were taken upstairs to their room for the evening where there were two sleeping bags and two pack and plays laid out around the room, along with some toys for when Tali and Victoria wake up. The adults all gathered in the living room and got caught up with each other, having not all been together since Thanksgiving. At 11:45, Abby brought out the champagne glasses, passing them around to everyone in the room. Meanwhile, Ducky set out the bottles of champagne and sparkling grape juice for Breena who was still nursing Charles. Ducky started pouring the champagne around and came to Ziva last who put her hand up, smiling.

"No thank you Ducky, I will have what Breena is having."

Everyone turned around to her, curiousness written on their face as Ziva was not usually one to turn down alcohol. Gibbs and Tony had smirks on their faces while Ducky just smiled knowingly as Ziva slightly nodded. "Of course my dear." He then picked up the bottle of sparkling grape juice and poured a glass for Ziva and Breena. When she realized everyone was still staring at her, she just smiled and raised her glass.

"I am pregnant."

At her announcement, Abby immediately sat her glass down and ran up to hug Ziva who handed her glass off to Tony to avoid spilling it. Breena was next, followed by McGee, Ducky, an awkward hug by Jimmy, and then Delilah, each of them offering their congratulations. Gibbs gave her another embrace before Tony enveloped her in his arms and pressed a kiss to her lips. He let go, keeping his arm around the side of her waist, large smiles on both of their faces. It was now 2 minutes until midnight and they all picked up their glasses again, watching the TV and waiting for the ball to drop. At 15 seconds, they all joined in on the countdown, getting louder as it got closer to 1. When the clock struck midnight, they all raised their glasses in a toast as "Happy New Year" was sang all around, then each couple reveled in a kiss and Abby received hugs from both Gibbs and Ducky.

"We're all back in DC this year, there's two new babies in the family, and Tony and Ziva are having a baby. This is gonna be the best New Year ever!" And, like usual, Abby's enthusiasm was shared all around.


	5. A Happy Man

**A Happy Man**

 _ **This chapter is dedicated to Scarlett – your review made me smile, thank you so much for the kind words and the inspiration for this chapter!**_

 _I apologize for the delay in this chapter! Since I posted the last chapter I've started my summer class that's 4 days a week (while also working), and worked a 4-day music festival. I'm supposed to be writing a short paper for class right now but am writing this instead. Also, I've never been pregnant so all of my pregnancy info comes from stories from my mom, cousins, and best friend._

 _ **February 13, 2019**_

"So, are you ready for your appointment? You're four months now so we can find out the gender today, right?" Tony said, rubbing Ziva's belly as they lounged on the couch, him with his feet on the coffee table and her leaning against his side with her feet up on the couch.

"I am, and I am almost 18 weeks so yes, I suppose we could find out the gender today."

"You sound hesitant about that, why are you hesitant? Don't you want to find out what we're having?" Ziva sat up straight and turned to look at Tony.

"I would just, like it to be a, a surprise. I did not know with Tali until she was born. I think there was a thrill about not knowing for sure, even though I knew in my heart that she was a girl. Why, do you want to find out today?"

"Well, I think I'd like to know. I mean, I was definitely surprised with Tali so I was just hoping that, with this one, I'd get to know what it was as soon as I could."

"I get where you are coming from Tony, but you are already getting to know this baby from the beginning, does it really matter whether we know if it is a boy or a girl now or when it is born?" Ziva placed her hand on his bicep and leaned in, hugging him as much as she could from that angle.

"Well, I guess you're right. But still, I wanna know. You know I don't like to wait know something, especially something this huge! Can we think about it at least?" His hopeful expression almost made her want to reconsider, thinking maybe this time it would be nice to know what she was having before birth. "You're thinking about finding out now aren't you?" Tony's voice pulled her out of her thoughts and made her realize again just how well her husband knew her.

"Okay, so maybe knowing now would not be such a bad thing." Tony looked at her knowingly. "Fine, okay, let us find out today." A huge smile broke out on Tony's face.

"Are you sure. Like, are you sure sure?" Ziva nodded and Tony kissed the top of her head. "Well let's get going so we can find out!" Tony jumped up and grabbed Ziva's hand, pulling her up off of the couch and they walked out to the car hand in hand.

They arrived at Ziva's appointment 10 minutes early and were taken back to a room right away to wait for her doctor.

"So, you said with Tali your mother's intuition told you she was a girl, what's it telling you this time?" Ziva rubbed her stomach fondly as Tony poked around the room, looking at the various pamphlets laid out.

"I believe this one will be a boy. I am carrying differently than I was with Tali, much lower, that is one of old wives tales is it not?"

"Hey, look at that, you got it right." Tony smiled at Ziva's scrunched face that said she was slightly annoyed but more humored than anything. "So, you really think this little one's a boy huh? Funny, I was thinking we'd have another girl."

"What makes you say that Tony." He came up and sat on the corner of the bed next to her.

"I dunno. I just think it'd be nice to have another little girl to spoil. I mean, don't get me wrong, a boy would be great too, I could teach him to play basketball and my love of cars, but every time I picture this little one it's always a baby girl."

"Well, I guess we will find out soon, yes?" Tony nodded, leaning down and pressing a gentle kiss on Ziva's lips. They were broken apart by a knock on the door, signaling the entrance of Dr. Rebecca Thomas. Pleasantries were exchanged before Dr. Thomas got down to business getting ready to do the ultrasound. Ziva lay back on the table and pulled her shirt up to under her breasts as she prepared for the cold gel to be placed on her abdomen.

"So, we're at 4 months. Are we finding out the gender now?" Dr. Thomas looked back and forth between the parents as she squeezed the gel onto Ziva's rounded stomach. Ziva looked at Tony in confirmation of their decision before speaking.

"Yes, we would like to know the sex of the baby."

"Okay then, let's get started then." The doctor moved the ultrasound wand around, pointing out the baby's head, spine, arms, and legs. "Uh oh." Tony and Ziva immediately perked up, faces flooding with concern at the doctor's words.

"Uh oh? What uh oh? Is something wrong with the baby?" Tony's panicked voice filled the room as Ziva grabbed his hand.

"Oh, no, I'm sorry to have startled you. Nothing is wrong with the baby. This little one is stubborn and doesn't want to move around so unfortunately, we won't be able to tell the sex today." The parents let out a collective sigh and Ziva squeezed her husband's hand in relief. They got through the rest of the appointment smoothly, scheduling their next appointment on their way out and carrying the sonogram of their baby.

 **February 14, 2019**

"Tony, I hate that your father has had to watch Tali these last two days." With their doctor's appointment being yesterday and today being Valentine's Day, Senior had offered to let Tali stay at his house both last night and tonight so give the couple could attend their doctor's appointment without hassle and spend Valentine's Day together. They were now getting ready to go out to dinner and dancing at one of their favorite restaurants.

"Nonsense. You know he loves spending time with her." Ziva was standing at the closet in her robe, putting the finishing touches on her makeup while Tony tied his tie as he sat on the bed waiting for her.

"I know but, he has been watching her a lot lately and I feel bad." Tony stood up from his spot on the bed and pulled her in for a hug and kissed the crown of her head. He grabbed her necklace off of the dresser, a gold rectangle with David-DiNozzo engraved on the back and, on the front, Tali's name on the left, the Star of David in the middle, and an empty space on the right for their new baby's name that Tony gifted to her on her birthday right after he found out she was pregnant.

"It's not watching her when it's family Ziva, it's spending time with her." Ziva turned to wrap her arms around her husband.

"You are very wise sometimes ahava. Now go in the living room so that I can finish getting ready."

"Yes ma'am." Tony mock saluted her before letting go and walking into the living room. 15 minutes later, Ziva walked out of the bedroom in a figure hugging, dark red dress that had a sweetheart neckline and flowy off-the-shoulder straps that was held up by spaghetti straps and accentuated her slight baby bump. As soon as he heard the door open, Tony turned around and stared at his wife as she approached him. "You look," he paused for a moment as he took her hand and spun her around, "absolutely breathtaking." Ziva blushed, still unused to receiving compliments from her husband.

"Thank you Tony. You look handsome tonight." Ziva reached up to fix his tie before placing her hand on his chest and tilting her head up to place a kiss on his lips. What started out as a short meeting of lips quickly turned passionate as the couple engaged in the familiar push and pull of mouths melding together and hands roaming. They pulled apart when air became a necessity and rested their foreheads together, breathing heavily. "We need to get going if we are going to make our reservations Tony." It took a moment before her words registered in his brain.

"Right. Right. Raincheck for tonight?" Ziva's lips curled upwards and placed a light kiss on his lips, breathing out "absolutely" before pulling away, grabbing his hand and leading him towards the door. He retrieved their coats from the closet beside the front door, pulling Ziva's around her shoulders before pulling his own on and leading them out the door.

"So Zi, I've been thinking. Maybe yesterday was a sign that we should wait to find out the gender. I mean, first you wanted to wait and I talked you out of it, then the baby is so stubborn, like you, that it wouldn't even move so we could tell anyway."

"What are you saying Tony, do you think we should wait until the baby is born now?"

"I think so Zi. Maybe you were right and waiting will be all the fun. What do you think?" Ziva sat her utensils down and brushed her hands on her napkin before placing her elbows on the table and her chin on her clasped hands.

"I think, I think I would like that Tony. I almost changed my mind again yesterday and suggest that we wait but you seemed so excited to know then and I did not want to take that away from you." Tony looked at her in awe and shook his head, reaching over to clasp her hands.

"Ziva, you wouldn't have been taking anything away from me. I know I was pretty insistent yesterday about finding out but, I'm kinda excited to be surprised now. And I'm sorry for bringing up the Tali situation, that was low of me."

"It is okay Tony. You have forgiven me and it is water under the bridge but I know that it is still a sore spot for you. I should have taken that into consideration more. But now we are in agreement yes?" He nodded and pulled their clasped hands up to press a kiss to her knuckles.

"We are very much in agreement. Although I still think it's gonna be a girl." Ziva chuckled and shook her head.

"Whatever you say Tony, but my intuition is telling me it's a boy."

"Well, girl or boy, I'll be happy with whatever we have." Ziva leaned in to press a gentle kiss on his lips.

"Let us go home and finish what we started earlier, yes?" Tony hummed in agreement, pulling out enough money to cover the bill and a generous tip to place on the table before leading Ziva out of the restaurant, eager to get home and kick off their private celebration.

 _In case you were wondering, I will be doing a labor chapter which will be written and posted mid-late August because that is when my best friend is due so it will be loosely based on her._

 _**Title inspired by Thomas Rhett's "Die a Happy Man"_


	6. Watermelon Crawl

**Watermelon Crawl**

 **March 20, 2019**

"Tony." It was currently 3:28 am and Ziva was wide awake in bed experiencing her latest craving – watermelon – and of course there was none in the house because she finished it off just 5 hours ago. "Tonyyyyy. Wake up ahava." Since her voice seemed to have no effect on her sleeping husband, she started resorting to poking him in the side and rubbing her cold feet over his legs. Still getting no response, she grabbed her water bottle off her nightstand, unscrewed the cap, and began pouring it on the back of his neck.

"Gah!" He jumped out of the bed, looking around before realizing Ziva was the culprit. "Really Zi? Again?" Tony climbed back into bed as Ziva was trying and failing to conceal her laughter.

"I am sorry Tony but you would not wake up and that has proven to be the most effective way to get you to wake up in the past." He shook his head to sling off the rest of the water before tapping his neck with the comforter.

"Zi, why are we up at" he looked to the nightstand to see the time on the alarm clock, "3:30 in the morning?"

"Because Tony, I need watermelon." He looked at her exasperated.

"But you just had watermelon. Isn't there any left in the fridge?" Ziva looked sheepish and started drawing random patterns on the comforter.

"No. I ate the rest of it before I went to bed."

"The rest of it… that was a whole watermelon. You ate a whole watermelon?! How in the world can you want more?!"

"I don't want it Tony, the baby needs it." She pulled out her best puppy dog face and started fluttering her eyelashes. Unable to say no to her, Tony sighed.

"Well there's no more watermelon in the house now so what do you suppose I do, go out to the store in the middle of the night to get more?" Ziva bit her lip and looked up at him. "You want me to go out to the store in the middle of the night to get more don't you?" Ziva nodded and clapped her hands.

"Yes! Thank you Tony." She pulled herself up into a sitting position to better reach him and placed a kiss on his lips. "The baby and I thank you."

"Yeah yeah yeah." He mock grumbled, getting up off of the bed and pulling on a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt before sitting on the edge of his side of the bed and lacing up his tennis shoes. "The things I do for you." He felt a pillow hit his back.

"I heard that Tony." Ziva smiled as she saw Tony shake his head. He stood up and kneeled on the bed, leaning over for a goodbye kiss.

"You know I love you. And I love you too little one," he leaned down and placed a kiss on her bump, "even if you do make me go out at three o'clock in the morning." Tony grabbed his wallet and keys off of his nightstand. "I'll be back soon love." Ziva waved from her place on the bed, smiling at her husband that has already proved he will do anything for her and their little family.

Tony walked into Kroger, the only grocery store in the area open 24-7 that Ziva would accept fruit from, and headed straight for the fruit section with a purpose. He picked out a watermelon with the technique Ziva had taught him and headed toward the checkout when his phone beeped with a text.

" _Get Nutella – Z"_ Groaning, he turned around and walked down the aisle to pick up her requested Nutella. Half-way pack to the checkout, his phone beeped again with another text requesting pickles, followed immediately by a text requesting fish. At that, he trudged up to the front to get a cart that, in hindsight, he should have gotten to begin with, and went to pick up her latest requested cravings. After finally selecting a fish he knew she would like and throwing it in the cart, his phone rang again, this time with a phone call.

"Yes dear?"

" _Tony, will you please get some pre-cut watermelon? You know I can only eat it when it is cold and I really want some tonight."_ He agreed, turning the cart to go back to the produce section. _"Oh and the baby wants granola. Thank you sweetie."_ Ziva hung up immediately after that, leaving Tony to stare at the phone before closing it and starting on his new mission, finding granola.

After spending almost 30 minutes in the store, he finally made his way up to the only check-out open. As he started placing his items on the belt.

"Pregnant wife at home?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

"I've seen you walk up and down these 2 aisles for almost 15 minutes. That and you have a cart full of watermelon, Nutella, pickles, fish, and granola." Tony chuckled as the cashier scanned and bagged his items.

"She woke me up wanting watermelon." The cashier just nodded knowingly as Tony paid and grabbed his bags.

"Have a good night. And good luck!" Tony just waved back over his shoulder, wanting to get home to his wife and get back to bed.

It was just after 7:00 am and he was sitting behind Ziva in the bathroom, holding her hair back as she emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. He reached over and grabbed a hair tie off of the sink to pull her hair into a loose bun so that he could wet a couple washcloths. She finally seemed to be done and leaned back, flushing the toilet. Tony resumed rubbing her back and started pressing ta cool washcloth to her forehead, handing her the other one to wipe her mouth.

"I can't believe I am having morning sickness. I really thought that since it hadn't started in the second month like it had with Tali that I would be able to avoid it this time but it appears I was wrong." Tony pressed a kiss to her crown.

"I'm sorry hunny. But do you think maybe it's not morning sickness? I mean, you did eat the whole package of watermelon and half a bag of granola last night. And you mixed half of the watermelon with the granola and Nutella." Ziva turned and sat down next to her husband who wrapped his arm around her shoulder and moved them where their backs were against the cabinets.

"Well, I suppose that could be it." She leaned her head over on Tony's shoulder, thankful that, morning sickness or not, he was here with her to experience it this time.

 _I hope you enjoyed this fun little chapter that I whipped up last night! My mom and I were eating watermelon last night and it made me think of how both she and my best friend craved watermelon during pregnancy. After re-reading Scarlett's review, I knew I had to write this._

" _Watermelon Crawl" is a fun song by Tracy Byrd that I couldn't resist making the title of this chapter since it's meant to be a fun chapter._


	7. Vacation

**Vacation**

 _I apologize for how late this chapter is. I hadn't planned on taking such a long hiatus, but I had a June semester class, planned a baby shower and anniversary party in July and went on vacation for a week. While I'm finally back into the swing of things, my nephew is due any day now and my fall semester starts at the end of August but I'll try my hardest to get this story complete by mid-September._

 **April 5, 2019**

"Tony, I want to go on a trip." Tony stared at her in surprise from his seat across the room as they waited for the nurse to come in. "What? I think it would be nice for the three of us to get away for a few days before I cannot fly again for 3 more months. Plus it would be our last vacation with just me, you, and Tali. Please Tony?" She looked at him with puppy dog eyes that he couldn't resist and now he knew where Tali learned it from. He just laughed and shook his head.

"Like I could say no to you Ziva." Tony walked next to her bed and leaned down, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. "Besides, I think a vacation would be amazing. Do you think you'll still be able to fly?"

"As long as my due date has not moved up by a month, then I'm still in my second trimester and able to fly. Although I would like to ask my doctor first and get her opinion." A knock on the door interrupted their thoughts as Dr. Thomas came in.

"How are we today?" After the couple replied with synchronized "goods," the doctor continued. So, you're 25 weeks now Ziva, how have things been going since the last time we met?"

Ziva thought back for a moment to almost a month ago, the last time she had had an appointment. "Well, I started having morning sickness. It started one night after I ate too much watermelon and has not stopped since. I had hoped that, since it did not happen in my first trimester, I had gotten lucky this time but, wishful thinking I suppose."

"And how often has it been occurring?" Ziva looked to Tony for help, trying to remember just how much time she had spent emptying her stomach in the past month.

"I think it's been almost every day. I know I usually hear her get up around 5 or 6 in the morning and rush to the bathroom. When it first happened I thought maybe it was just from all the food she ate that morning but it's been happening a lot since then, even when she hasn't eaten anything since dinner." Ziva looked down sheepishly before turning to her husband.

"Well, that may not exactly be true." At his look of confusion she elaborated. "Since then I may have been waking up in the middle of the night for a little, snack."

"What? But, I've never heard you get up or felt the bed move until you're waking up in the morning."

"Yes well, I have kind of been keeping snacks in my nightstand drawer and, under my pillow." She looked at Tony ashamed and he just shook his head, smiling at his wife.

"Well, I guess it's better than keeping a gun under your pillow." Ziva just smiled, then turned her attention to her doctor when she cleared her throat.

"You two are my most interesting patients, always getting so wrapped up in one another I believe you forget anyone else is in the room." Tony and Ziva looked at each other with sparks in their eyes, being all too familiar with their actions, before turning to look at their doctor. "Anyway, I believe we have figured out where this morning sickness is coming from. Ziva, try to avoid snacking in the middle of the night. If you do feel hungry, drink a bottle of water and try something bland to avoid getting sick in the morning. If you try this and are still getting sick in the morning, then it is just your everyday morning sickness that comes with the joys of being pregnant." Ziva nodded and promised to follow the doctor's orders and cut down on her midnight snacking. "Now, how about we get to the fun part, the ultrasound. So, are we wanting to find out the gender today since little one was stubborn last time?"

"No. Tony and I have discussed it and we would like to be surprised." She looked to Tony for confirmation and he nodded, agreeing with his wife.

"Okay, well let's get started." Ziva laid back on the bed, pulling her shirt up to allow for the sonogram. She squirmed at the feel of the gel, something she never was able to get used to. All eyes were on the screen as Dr. Thomas moved the wand around Ziva's stomach, pointing out arms and legs. The baby was stubborn yet again, not allowing them to tell the gender even if they wanted to know. After the pictures were captured and printed and measurements were taken, Ziva was able to wipe off the gel and sit up, pulling her shirt down as she looked at their latest sonogram. "So, any questions before we wrap things up?"

"We were talking earlier about taking a trip before the baby's born but I'm concerned about her flying. What's the best way for her to travel now?"

"Well, a common misconception is that flying is dangerous past the second trimester. Ziva, you can actually fly as late as 37 weeks as long as there's no complications which, as of now, have been non-existent. If you're travelling by car, try to limit your driving time to 6 or 7 hours and make sure to stop every couple of hours to stretch your legs. Just remember, you know your limits on what you can handle, and that applies to your vacation spot as well. I would recommend staying away from amusement parks and instead find a beach or nature area that you can relax in. Other than that, I have no other advice for you on that regard. Please contact me if you have any more questions or concerns and I will see you in a few weeks."

Tony and Ziva took in her advice carefully, standing up and shaking hands before walking back out to the front to schedule her next appointment.

"So," Tony asked as they got into the car, "shall we go pick up Tali and then get something for lunch?"

"Sounds good to me. And we can start talking about where would like to go on vacation."

By the time they got to Senior's to pick up Tali, they had narrowed down vacation spots to four different places. They decided to tell Tali at lunch and hopefully they would be able to choose one then. With a happy toddler in the backseat chatting about her day with Nonno, they drove to their usual diner and chose a corner booth. After placing their orders, they decided now was the time to bring up their conversation from earlier.

"Tali, your Abba and I were talking earlier and we would like for the three of us to go on vacation before your baby brother or sister arrives. What do you say to that?" Tali looked at her Ima with wide eyes and nodded enthusiastically.

"Can we go to Disney World Ima?" Ziva and Tony laughed, expecting that question to come up since Tali had been watching _Brave_ and _Mulan_ recently.

"Well, that is on our list tesoro, but we haven't decided yet. Your Ima and I will talk about it tonight and, once we have our list narrowed down, you can help us decide." Tali beamed at her parents and began talking non-stop about what princesses she wants to meet as Tony and Ziva listened intently, smiling at their daughter's enthusiasm.

"Well, we finally have one place knocked off of our list." Tony and Ziva had been sitting on the couch since Tali went to bed one hour ago, going over their vacation options and, after crossing out and re-writing places, they finally decided to eliminate one off of their list. "Ziva." She jolted awake, the pen falling out of her hand and landing with a thud on the floor, her reflexes not as fast when pregnant and half asleep.

"Sorry Tony, I guess I was more tired than I thought. Now what were you saying?"

"We can knock a place off of our list now, California. I don't think it would be a good idea to travel that far at this stage in pregnancy. Maybe we could go when this one is a little older."

"I believe you are right Tony. And as much as Tali would love it, I believe Disney World is out as well. I want to be able for all of us to spend time together and, since I cannot ride the rides, I would be you and Tali or me and Tali and that is just not what I want right now. Maybe we should put it off as well until this one is at least a year old."

"Okay, Disney is crossed off the list. That leaves us with two options: Gatlinburg, Tennessee or Greenville, South Carolina. Should we make a list of pros and cons?" At Ziva's nod, he started drawing a chart for each place. "First, Gatlinburg. Pro, they have a wonderful aquarium and are very family friendly. Con, the traffic can be terrible." Ziva chimed in with the next items.

"Pro, we could see the mountains. Con, it is a popular tourist attraction and we would be going during spring break so it would be really busy."

"Pro, there's plenty to do, including miniature golf. Con, it's at least six hours from a beach which we talked about going to."

"Let's talk about Greenville now." Ziva waited for Tony to make his last remarks about Gatlinburg before continuing. "Pro, I read that they have a fantastic children's museum. Con," she paused for a moment, "I cannot think of a con at the moment, you go."

"Oh, uh, pro, they have a nice trail downtown. Oh, and they have an art and history museum I think you would like." Again, there was a pause before he decided he could not think of a con and tuned it over to Ziva.

"Pro, it is only 3 hours from a beach, but we would have to rent a car to drive over to it. Each place is the same distance, by car or plane." Ziva looked at her husband in thought. "I think the choice is obvious Tony." He smiled back at her, leaning over to press a kiss to her lips.

"We're going to South Carolina?" Ziva smiled and nodded, leaning in as far as she could for another kiss.

"Well, now that that is settled, I am ready for bed." Tony stood up and grabbed her arms, helping her up even though she could still get up easily on her own. "You go on to bed and I will be there in a minute."

"Remember what the doctor said about snacking tonight." She paused half-way to the kitchen and looked back at him, sticking her tongue out and proceeding to the kitchen while Tony went to get ready for bed. She came into the bedroom five minutes later carrying two bottles of water, a loaf of bread, and a bag of pretzels, receiving a look from Tony.

"What? She said if I had to eat a midnight snack to eat something bland and these are bland." Tony just shook his head as she placed her items on the nightstand before laying down and rolling over to face her husband. "Goodnight Tony, we love you." He placed on kiss on her lips, then kissed his fingertips and pressed them to her belly, whispering goodnight to both mother and baby. Relishing in the ability to still do so, Ziva rolled over and pulled Tony closer to curl against her back. His arm went immediately across her stomach as it had since he first found out she was pregnant and pressed a kiss to the back of her head as her arm reached up to intertwine with his.

Tony woke up at 6:00 am expecting to hear Ziva in the bathroom but instead found her still curled in his arms. Surprised yet pleased she was still in this position, he pressed a kiss to her shoulder before getting comfortable and preparing to sleep for another hour or two. He could not help but notice though the empty water bottle, half-eaten bag of pretzels, and opened loaf of bread that rested on the nightstand.

 _I have been to both Gatlinburg and Greenville on vacation and they are both beautiful places in their own right. While Gatlinburg can be extremely busy with tourists, it is totally worth it. I already have the next chapter planned out so hopefully I'll have that done within the next few days (pending my nephew's birth that is.)_

 _Pregnancy travel information comes from: /pregnancy-health/traveling-during-pregnancy/_

 _Chapter title from Thomas Rhett's "Vacation"_


	8. This City

**This City**

" _Pull me close put your lips on mine… Your hands in my jacket, caught up in this magic. This city never looked so good the way it's looking so good on you."_

 _As I was starting this chapter, I realized I had been putting the wrong year on the last few chapters and miscalculated Tali's age. That has now been taken care of and those chapters have been updated to reflect the correct years._

 **Friday, April 19, 2019**

"Ima! Abba! Let's goooooo!" Tali was bouncing up and down by the front door, holding her kelev in one hand and her suitcase handle in the other as she waited impatiently for her parents. Ziva soon came out of the bedroom holding their carry-ons while Tony trailed behind with their luggage.

"Patience motek. It is only 10:00 in the morning, we do not need to be at the airport for at least another 2 hours." She leaned down – as much as her 6 month belly would allow – and rubbed her hand over Tali's hair and down the side of her face. "How about we have some breakfast first and then it will be time to leave?" Tali nodded and raced to the kitchen island, climbing up in the chair. Ziva turned to her husband, "Will you load the car Tony while I make breakfast?"

"Sure thing babe." She squeezed his arm, turning around and heading toward the kitchen while Tony grabbed their bags and loaded their car. Senior would be arriving soon to drive them to the airport to avoid paying for parking.

"Can we have pancakes Ima? Oh, with strawberries? And chocolate chips?"

Ziva smiled and shook her head, hearing both hers and Tony's tastes in their daughter. "Of course." She tickled her side before getting down a mixing bowl and the pancake mix. ""Tali, will you get the strawberries out of the fridge for me and the chocolate chips for your Abba?" Tali scrambled out of her seat and ran to the fridge, standing on her tip toes and pulling out the bowl of strawberries. She handed them to Ziva, then went in search of the chocolate chips, finally finding them in a container in the pantry. There were two bowls sitting on the counter, each filled with batter, just waiting for their ingredients. Ziva pointed to one bowl, "Pour some chocolate chips in there while I slice these strawberries." After Tali poured two handfuls of chips in, Ziva passed her a spoon so she could start stirring and then dumped her sliced strawberries in the still plain batter. Tony came back inside to see Ziva pouring batter onto heated pans.

"Daddy!" Tali rushed up to him and was picked up swiftly. "Come on, me and Ima are making pancakes! You can flip!"

"Oh I can flip huh?" He turned her upside down in his arms as she squealed. They were both laughing as he turned her upright.

"Not flip me daddy, I meant the pancakes." She squirmed out of his arms and ran up to the stove where Ziva was watching them intently.

"I can definitely flip pancakes." He took the outstretched spatula and the family finished cooking, Ziva pouring the batter, Tony flipping, and Tali helping put the finished pancakes on a plate. As soon as the last one was done and the stove turned off, Senior came in the door greeting his family.

"Nonno!" She ran into his waiting arms, giving him a big hug and then turning back towards the kitchen table, dragging him along by his hand. "We made pancakes, want some?"

"I would love some. Good morning Junior, Ziva." He stopped by each to give them a hug before sitting at the open place at the table.

"Thank you for dropping us off Anthony." Ziva hugged her father-in-law as best she could, stepping aside to let her husband and daughter embrace Senior.

"Yeah, thanks dad. We really appreciate it."

"Of course. And I'll be back here on Sunday to pick you all up. Your flight arrives at 8:00 pm right?"

"Yep, pending no delays." Tony looked at his watch and looked back up at his family. "Okay, our flight leaves at 2:00 so we need to get going, don't want the plane to leave without us." Another round of hugs went through the family then each traveler grabbed their carry-on and headed toward their gate, Tali waving bye to her grandfather as they walked away.

Once on the plane, Tony got Tali situated and made sure Ziva was comfortable before storing their bags and taking his seat. They spent the hour and a half flight talking about everything they wanted to do while on vacation. At last, the plane began its descent into the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport. Their bags were gathered and a car rented before stepping out into the South Carolina sun, all basking in the slightly warmer weather. By the time they got off of the plane, got their luggage, and rented a car, it was nearing 5:00 pm when they pulled into their hotel.

"So, how does getting some dinner, walking around a bit, and then taking a swim in the pool sound for a relaxing night?" Tony asked his girls as they rolled their luggage into the room while Tali ran and jumped on the bed by the window.

"That sounds wonderful Tony." She rose up on her tip toes to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "Let me just get changed and we shall go." Tony placed her suitcase on the bed nearest the door and unzipped it, allowing her to take out her clothes and swimsuit for the evening before he zipped it back up and placed it on the floor. "You know Tony, you do not have to keep doing everything for me. I am not an invalid you know."

"I know Zi. But," he looked away and watched Tali play on the bed before looking back at his wife, "I like doing things for you and, since I'm here now, I want to do anything I can that would make things easier for you." Ziva looked at him in admiration, putting her hand on the side of his face and pulling him in for a deep kiss.

"I am sorry Tony, I had not thought of it that way. Thank you, ahava, for everything. I love you." Tony pressed his lips to hers once more before pulling away.

"I love you too sweetheart." Ziva pulled away and walked into the bathroom to get changed before going to dinner. "Okay Tali, time to get ready."

"Okay daddy!" Tali jumped off of the bed and picked out her outfit for the evening, with some help from Tony of course. Father and daughter were ready and waiting on the bed when Ziva walked out 10 minutes later.

"All ready sweetheart?" Ziva sat next to him on the bed, grabbing her shoes, and he took notice of the sweater draped over her shoulders. "You're wearing a sweater? It's like 80 degrees out there." He grabbed her shoes out of her hands, kneeling in front of her to slip them on her feet.

"Oh thank you Tony. And yes I am. I get cold in restaurants easily, plus it will be in the low 70's by the time we will be leaving and you know I like my heat."

"That I do Zi, that I do." He pushed himself up on the corner of the bed, then grabbed Ziva's hand and pulled her to him. "Ready to go Tali?" She jumped off of her bed to meet her parents.

"I'm ready daddy. Can I bring Caleb?" Caleb quickly became her stuffed dog's name after Victoria misunderstood Tali saying kelev and, even though Ziva told her kelev was just the Hebrew word for dog, the name stuck with her and Tali quickly adopted the name.

"No honey, I think Caleb should stay here." Her mumbled "okay" was heard by both Tony and Ziva as she crossed the room and placed her kelev on her bed. She walked back over to her parents and they left the room, deciding to walk the few blocks to the restaurant.

A leisurely hour and a half was spent over dinner and dessert - a promise to Tali for being on vacation – and it was pushing 8:00 pm by the time they left for their hotel.

"Are we gonna go swim Ima?" Ziva chuckled and ran her hand over Tali's hair.

"Yes motek. When we get back to our room we will change into our swim suits and then go to the pool. It was quiet earlier so we should be the only ones in there." The family made their way back upstairs, changed quickly, and then took the elevator down to the pool level. They had the whole pool to themselves which allowed Tali to jump in the pool – under Tony's watch – and Ziva to enjoy doing her laps, a favorite work-out of hers during pregnancy, before Tony and Ziva helped Tali with her swimming. 45 minutes were enjoyed in solidarity before another family came in, prompting Ziva to get out and soak her feet in the hot tub. Daddy and daughter spent a few more minutes in the pool before getting out and drying off, bringing a towel over to Ziva. By the time they all got washed up from the pool, it was almost 11:00 pm and all were ready for bed. Tony and Ziva tucked Tali in, each pressing a kiss to her forehead and saying their goodnights before crawling into bed.

"Goodnight ahava." Ziva leaned into Tony, kissing him gently before rolling over and curling up on her side.

"Goodnight amore." He pressed up behind her and kissed her neck, falling asleep peacefully.

 **Saturday, April 20, 2019**

Tali woke her parents up right at 8:00 am, an hour later than normal, with an excited request to go to the children's museum. Coffee for Tony, tea for Ziva, and a quick breakfast later, they were on their way. The couple paid and received wristbands while Tali got a stamp on the hand. Entering the main level, Tali went straight to the race car simulator, Tony following closely behind. Ziva walked up behind the pair as Tony was watching his daughter and slipped her arm around his. "Like father like daughter, yes?" Startled, Tony turned around and smiled at his wife.

"Oh yeah. Just wait though, I read they have an art area too, then it's like mother like daughter." And when they finally made it to the art area, Ziva knew exactly what Tony was talking about earlier as she immediately began painting a family portrait, she was definitely their daughter. 3 floors and the same number of hours later, Tali had enjoyed the hospital exhibit, the studio, the indoor climber, and had exhausted herself on the outdoor playground. With a worn out 6 year-old and 6 month pregnant mother, the trio retired to their hotel room for snacks and a nap before heading out for an early dinner by the river. After dinner, they took a walk around the river's trail where Ziva overheard a family talking about Shakespeare in the Park that was starting in 30 minutes.

"Tony, we should go. It would be interesting to see Shakespeare in the Park here. Please ahava?" She pulled out the puppy dog eyes, knowing Tony was unable to resist when she or Tali made them.

"Of course we can Zi." He smiled before looking at his watch. "We better start heading over there now though if we wanna get a spot." Ziva grabbed his and Tali's hands, pulling them in the direction she knew the stage was. They arrived with minutes to spare and found a spot to sit down. Ziva was captivated by the performance and Tony was shocked to find that he actually enjoyed it. Tali, however, was too tired from a long day of walking and fell asleep in her father's lap half-way through. When it was over, Ziva stood up and clapped while Tony lifted a still asleep Tali into his arms, thankful the walk back to their hotel wasn't far.

"Oh thank you Tony, that was wonderful. And the actors were so good! I would really like to go to more plays back home." She kissed the corner of his mouth and looped her arm through his free one as they walked back. After putting Tali to sleep, she joined Tony on the bed, scooting up next to him with her back to the headboard as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she laid her head against his neck. "It has been a wonderful trip so far Tony. I am so glad we decided to do this before this little one is born. We have not had a vacation with just the 3 of us since," Ziva rubbed her belly and thought back, "well, actually never. really. Not unless you count the trips from Paris to DC or Israel."

"You're right Zi. And I don't think those count as vacations since we were either visiting family or friends in either places. This has been great, just the three of us away for a weekend together before the baby comes. Imagine how much fun it'll be when this one's big enough and we can take them both to Disney World and ride the rides and meet the characters. I can't wait."

"Neither can I. Although I do wish we had more time for this trip. Tali is going to miss having this much attention when the new baby comes since she has been the center of our lives for so long." Tony looked down at his wife thinking.

"Why don't we stay longer then?" Ziva lifted her head and gave him a puzzled look. "Think about it, Tali is on spring break this week and both of us are already off. We could just cancel our flight for tomorrow evening, extend the car rental, and drive out to that beach you were talking about near Charleston. It's only a three hour drive so we could drive over there tomorrow, stay a couple nights, and then drive back here for a flight out on Tuesday." Ziva pondered the idea for a moment, looking more intrigued by the second.

"Well, I would like to see the history there. And, while it would most likely be too cold to enjoy the water, we could still walk along the beach."

"So, what do ya think?"

"I like it Tony. Let's do it."

"Okay, I'll call dad tomorrow and let him know the change of plans. We're going to the beach." Ziva smiled at his enthusiasm and they indulged in a kiss before laying down and saying goodnight, both excited for their new adventure.

 **Monday, April 22, 2019**

The sun had already started its descent on their last night of vacation when Tony and Ziva found themselves walking hand-in-hand along the South Carolina shoreline, Tali a few steps ahead of them watching for seashells. They stopped for a moment to enjoy the scenery - while Tali decided one last sandcastle had to be built - when a cool breeze filled the air and Ziva shivered, kicking herself for not wearing more layers. Tony noticed immediately and went to pull his sweatshirt off before a hand on the arm stopped him.

"Are you not cold?" Ziva shook her head, turning to face him and stepping close enough to put her hands in the pocket of his jacket, Tony wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in for a kiss.

"What was that for?" She looked up at her husband, a curious yet pleased expression gracing her features.

"Oh nothing. I just." He paused, thinking of just the right words to say. "You look so beautiful right now." Ziva blushed, still not used to hearing those words even though Tony utters them at least once a day. "I'm so, so happy we did this Ziva."

"Did what Tony? The vacation?"

"Well yeah, that too. But I mean this just, all of this. Tali, getting married, having another baby. I still can't believe it sometimes that this is my life."

"I know what you mean Tony. Sometimes I look at you and Tali and wonder how I got so lucky. And to think, it all started with phone sex." The couple laughed, looking over at Tali before joining her to make, in her words, "the bestest sand castle of all time in America." They could all agree that this had been the best vacation ever.


	9. Army

**Army**

" _So if anybody thinks I'm a hero. When they watch me walk right into the flames. "I'm just marchin to the sound of her heartbeat. Yeah I'm a soldier, but if I'm a soldier. She's an Army."_

 **May 9, 2019**

"So Tony, Ziva, we're getting down to the last two months. Are you ready?"

"I am very ready to meet this little one." Ziva rubbed her stomach which had grown exponentially since her last visit. "And I know that Tony is too."

"Oh yeah, I'm ready for her to get here." Ziva swatted his arm.

"Would you stop Tony? We do not know if it is a boy or a girl and yet you still keep calling him a girl."

"Well now. If that's not the pot calling the kettle black." Ziva gave him a look of confusion as Doctor Thomas looked on in amusement. "You just told me not to call the baby a girl but you keep referring to it as him."

"That is different though. I have mother's intuition." The couple entered into a stare-off until their doctor cleared her throat to get their attention.

"Okay you two. Let's get this ultrasound done and then you can finish your stand-off." Doctor Thomas went to work on Ziva's ultrasound. 30 minutes later Tony and Ziva walked out of the doctor's office hand-in-hand.

"So Zi, you wanna go to our favorite diner for lunch? Then we can pick up Tali from pre-school and take her to that park she loves."

"Sounds perfect ahava." They spent a leisurely 45 minutes eating lunch before it was time to pick up Tali. Back in the car, Tony grasped Ziva's hand again, brushing his thumb against hers as she dosed in the passenger seat. After waiting in line for 10 minutes, they finally pulled up to the front doors of the pre-school and Tali raced to her parents' car. As soon as she got in, Tony turned around with a finger to his lips.

"Shh sweetie, Ima's taking a little nap. How about we grab you something to eat then we can go to that park you love. And if you're good maybe we can get some ice cream afterwards.

"Okay daddy." Tali nodded happily in agreement. 5 minutes later, Tony noted how quiet the car was and looked in the rearview mirror to find Tali asleep in the backseat. He pulled into the parking lot of the park 20 minutes later, put the car in park, and then reached over to gently wake Ziva up.

"Have a nice nap?" She came out of sleep slowly and looked around in confusion before recognizing where they were at.

"We are at the park already? How long was I asleep?" Tony thought for a moment and added up the driving times from the diner to the pre-school and then to the park.

"Oh, about 40 minutes."

"I am sorry Tony, I did not mean to sleep that long." She turned around to look behind her seat at Tali. "Looks like someone else was tired as well. Tali." Ziva tapped Tali's leg, "wake up motek. We are at the park." At the word "park" Tali woke up instantly and started unbuckling.

"Okay Ima, I'm ready, let's go!" Tony and Ziva laughed and started getting out of the car before Tali could race off. The family spent 30 minutes at the park before Tali requested ice cream. Having not eaten dinner yet, Ziva asked Tali to eat her fruit cup snack and pretzels before getting the sugary dessert. With surprisingly little protest, Tali ate her snacks and, true to their promise, the family walked down the street to their favorite parlor. Ziva went with her usual raspberry sherbet while Tony and Tali splurged with dark chocolate fudge and chocolate chip cookie dough respectively, though they each shared bites with one another. Once at home, Ziva re-heated the left over chicken and rice dish from the night before so they at least had a healthy supper after having their rare dessert first. Exhausted, Tali fell asleep early on the couch and Tony had to carry her to bed. Tony and Ziva did their part of their nightly ritual in putting their daughter to bed before going back into the living room and sitting down on the couch. Tony turned towards his wife.

"You've been fairly quiet today Zi, what's on your mind?" Ziva sighed and turned towards Tony, her hands in her lap.

"I am due on July 4th. That is just under two months Tony! We still have not chosen names! I am starting to stress out. I knew Tali's name from the beginning, Tali for my sister and Amadora because it is Italian for 'the gift of love; and yet we have never even talked about what we wanted this little one's name to be!" Ziva started crying out of frustration. "How could this not have come up before?!" Tony grabbed her hands that had started waving around animatedly as she talked.

"Ziva, amore, it's okay. We'll talk about it now and figure it out. It's gonna be alright. Okay?" Ziva nodded and leaned against Tony's chest. "First of all, how did you decide on what to name Tali? I know it was your sister's name but did you have several names picked out?"

"As soon as I found out I was pregnant I knew that, if it were a girl, I wanted to name her Tali. There was no other name I had ever considered."

"What about a boy? I know your mother's intuition told you it was a girl but did you ever have a name picked out in case you were wrong?" Ziva looked up at him in adoration.

"If it had been a boy, his name would have been Anthony." Tony looked at her in awe and tried to mask the emotion in his voice.

"You were. You would've named a boy after me?"

"Of course Tony. You were the father and I love you. It only made sense that a boy would have been named after you." Tony couldn't resist any longer and leaned down, pressing a kiss to her lips. She quickly deepened the kiss, loving how their mouths moved together perfectly. They separated slowly, coming together for a soft kiss before pulling away. "Now, let us talk about a name for this little one."

"So, how do we wanna do this?" Ziva thought for a moment, finally coming up with an idea.

"How about this. Each of us come up with one name each for a boy or girl and then when he or she is born, we will pick one of those names."

"That sounds good to me. Should we spitball some now or think about it and revisit the conversation?" Ziva looked confused for a moment before the idiom clicked in her head.

"I do not want to just, as you say, spitball names. Why don't we take a couple of days to think it over and then we can reconvene on Sunday and present our names. Oh! And no objections from the other person."

"Deal." They shook hands like they were closing a business deal before sealing it with a kiss. "So, are you ready for bed my ninja?"

"Very ready." Tony grabbed her hand and pulled her up off of the couch. Ziva took the lead and pulled him behind her to their room where they changed quickly into comfy pajamas and, taking advantage of Ziva's ability to still lay on her side, curled into their favorite position in bed.

* * *

 **Mother's Day, May 12, 2019**

"Happy Mother's Day Ima!" Tali yelled, climbing onto the middle of her parent's bed while Tony walked behind her carrying a homemade breakfast and fresh squeezed orange juice made by their eager to help daughter. She crawled over next to her mother who was just coming out of slumber.

"Oh my goodness motek what is this?" Ziva smiled at her daughter lovingly, rubbing a hand over her hair and down the side of her head.

"Daddy and I made you breakfast Ima! Well, Daddy made the breakfast, but I squeezed the orange juice." Tali watched intently as Ziva took a drink of her orange juice.

"Mmmm, it is very good, thank you tateleh." She hugged her daughter in gratitude and scooted over as Tony came around to her side of the bed, placing a tray over her outstretched legs and leaning down to press a kiss to her lips.

"Happy Mother's day tesoro." Ziva looked over the spread laid out before her, homemade waffles with strawberries, a blueberry muffin from her favorite bakery, turkey bacon, and a bowl of her favorite fruit. On the corner of the tray a small bouquet of red, yellow, and pink roses sat in a crystal vase adorned with a purple bow.

"Wow. Thank you Tony, everything looks amazing." He sat down next to his wife as Tali curled up on her other side. Ziva dug into the waffles first, moaning at how good they were before offering first her daughter then her husband a bite.

"Are you ready for your present Ima?"

"You got me a present? You really should not have." Ziva looked at Tali and then Tony.

"Of course we got you something Zi. It's Mother's day and you should always get presents for Mother's day." Tony grabbed the tray off of her legs while Tali crawled over to Tony's nightstand where she had placed Ziva's present earlier and grabbed it and her card. She proudly presented Ziva with her card made on colorful paper, a picture of the three of them drawn on the front with an arrow pointing towards Ziva's stomach and the word "baby" scribbled above. The message on the inside – written by Tony – brought tears to her eyes as she read Tali's words about how thankful she was to have 'the best Ima in the whole wide world' and how she couldn't wait to be a big sister.

"Thank you Tali, it is beautiful." She leaned over and pulled Tali into a tight hug, wiping her eyes as she pulled away. Tony rubbed her back and placed a kiss on the top of her head as she accepted the gift Tali held out for her. Ziva gasped as she opened the square box and pulled out a gold necklace with three charms. She fingered the sapphire, citrine, and emerald stones. "Oh I love it. Thank you." she kissed Tali's forehead and turned to Tony, pressing a short kiss on his lips. "Thank you."

"I wanted to get something for you that would represent our new family. And as soon as this little one is born I'm gonna get his or her birthstone added to it. Turn it around." Ziva turned the necklace around in her hands and smiled at each of their names being engraved into the gold on the back of their stone. Tears began running down her face again and she blamed the hormones for making her cry so much.

"Are you sad Ima?" Ziva patted her cheek reassuringly.

"No baby, these are happy tears. Very happy tears. Thank you both for making this such an amazing Mother's day."

"Well it's not over yet Zi." She looked at him in confusion. "We're gonna spend the whole day watching any movie of your choice and Gibbs and my dad are gonna come over for dinner to celebrate with us."

"Well then I better get up so we can get started. I think _Sound of Music_ shall be first, yes?" She smiled as Tony groaned and Tali ran into the living room, singing "Do-Re-Mi" at the top of her lungs. Tony just shook his head and mumbled something about musicals before grabbing the tray from the nightstand to place in the sink. Ziva crawled out of bed and took care of her morning ritual before joining her daughter and husband on the couch where blankets and pillows had already been laid out.

 _The Sound of Music_ , _Pirates of the Caribbean_ , and Disney's _Mulan_ later, the family decided it was time to get ready for the day. Ziva was pampered with a bubble bath prepared by Tony, complete with candles around the room and soft music playing, while Tony and Tali began making one of Ziva's favorite dishes, baked chicken with steamed vegetables in a creamy sauce. With dinner in the oven, Tony took Tali into the guest bathroom to get her cleaned up and dressed. He left Tali in her room playing and went to check on Ziva. Walking into their bathroom, he found Ziva with her head laid back on the rolled up towel with her eyes closed. Worried she had fallen asleep, he kneeled next to the tub and whispered her name. Her eyes fluttered open and looked lovingly at him.

"Have a good nap amore?"

"I was not asleep Tony, just relaxed. I think I will need help getting out of the tub though."

"Well then Mrs. DiNozzo, it would be my pleasure." Ziva pulled the drain plug and pushed herself up onto her knees. Tony grabbed her hands and helped pull her onto her feet and step out of the tub. He wrapped a warmed up towel around her so she could dry off before bringing her her favorite robe.

"Hmm, I could get use to this." Ziva slipped into the robe Tony held out for her and tied it around her protruding belly. She turned around in her husband's arms able to kiss him as she pleased now with no little eyes watching. "Thank you Tony."

"You are very welcome Zi. I like pampering you, you deserve it. Now, dinner is almost done and Gibbs and my dad will be here within the hour so let's get you dressed." Fifteen minutes later, Ziva was dressed in her favorite maternity dress - dark purple with cap sleeves and flowy knee-length skirt – and lounging on the couch while Tony got the chicken out of the oven and Tali set the table. Senior and Gibbs arrived as dinner was being placed on the table and Ziva opened the door, greeting them both.

"Happy Mother's day dear." Senior pulled her into a hug and handed her an envelope holding a gift certificate for a spa day.

"Oh my. Thank you Anthony but this is too much. You really shouldn't have." Senior just shook his head and insisted that she deserved it. "Well, I will make sure to use this after the baby is born." Ziva rubbed her belly affectionately and Senior patted her shoulder, stepping into the dining room to join his son and granddaughter and allow Gibbs to greet his surrogate daughter.

"Happy Mother's day Ziver." Gibbs gave her a side hug and kissed her forehead, presenting her with flowers, her favorite cupcake, and a small, hand-carved jewelry box. Ziva rubbed her hand over the polished wood, admiring the way her name was carved into the lid.

"Thank you Gibbs, they are lovely. This is a beautiful jewelry box, I love it. And this cupcake looks delicious, I will save it for after dinner." The two stepped into the kitchen where everyone else was already seated around the round table and Tali was patting the empty seat next to her.

"Granpa Gibbs, sit next to me!" Gibbs smiled and obliged, taking the seat next to her, leaving a seat open between himself and Tony for Ziva to sit. Ziva looked around the table in awe of her family thankful that she was here now and they were about to add one more child into the mix.

* * *

Senior and Gibbs left shortly after dessert – a red velvet double layer cake with cream cheese frosting topped with strawberries and chocolate shavings – and, after ensuring Tali was asleep, the couple got changed into pajamas and curled up on the couch facing each other, ready to present their names.

"So Ziva, this is it. Do you have your two names? Because there is no going back now."

"I am ready Tony. Although I do not think there will be any competition, my names are pretty good." Ziva tried and failed to hide a cocky smile that Tony had to force himself not to kiss off.

"Well then Ms. David," Ziva lifted an eyebrow at Tony's playful use of her maiden name, "why don't you go first since you're so sure of yourself."

"Very well then." Ziva looked down at her notepad in concentration, filtering out all of the names that had been crossed off. "My final names are, for a girl, Ariane, and for a boy – which I know it is -, Ezra." Tony looked thoughtful for a moment before glancing at his notebook, far fewer names than littered Ziva's, with two names circled multiple times at the top.

"I had a few ideas, but I kept going back to these two names. For a boy, Rafael or Rafi for short. And for a girl – which I know it is – Izabella."

"Well, we both have picked beautiful names Tony, I guess we will decided when he or she is born, yes?"

"That sounds like a plan. Now, it's almost midnight, let's get to bed Mrs. DiNozzo."

"That is the best idea you've had all night Mr. DiNozzo." Husband and wife climbed into bed on their respective sides facing each other and sharing a lingering kiss. "Laila tov hakhayim sheli."

"Buona notte vita mia."

 _AN: I'm an aunt now guys! My nephew was born a week and a half ago so I've been a little busy but it's given me some inspiration for future chapters. Also, I'm starting my senior year of college tomorrow so chapters may come a little slower._

 _I would love to hear what names y'all like best and what you think the baby is going to be!_

" _Laila tov_ _hakhayim sheli."_ _And_ _"Buona notte vita mia." Both translate to "Goodnight my life" in Hebrew and Italian respectively._

 _Title from Lady Antebellum's "Army"_


	10. The Stars

**The Stars**

" _The Stars ain't got nothin' on you. Your heart burns much brighter than the moon."_

 **Saturday, May 18, 2019 – Tali's 6** **th** **birthday party**

It looked like Disney's _Moana_ had exploded all over the bottom level of their house. This was Tali's last birthday as an only child and Ziva wanted to go all out, buying out almost the entire _Moana_ collection from the local party store, from plates and napkins to streamers and even a piñata filled to the brim with Tali's favorite candy. They even spent a hefty chunk of money on a custom made chocolate and caramel cake from Ziva's favorite bakery. It was still an hour before the grandfathers were coming and two hours before the rest of the guests were scheduled to arrive and Tony was busy blowing up balloons while Ziva was getting Tali ready.

"Daddy, daddy, do I look like a princess now?" Tali ran down the stairs to stand in front of her father and twirled. Ziva, with the help of Abby, had hand-made Tali a dress resembling Moana's outfit from the movie. Ziva trailed down the stairs behind her daughter, watching their interaction with a smile.

"You always look like a princess to me sweetheart." He pressed a kiss to her cheek and smiled up at Ziva watching them. "Your Ima did a good job on your dress didn't she?"

"Uh huh! It's beautiful! I love it!" Ziva walked over to her family then, placing a hand on her husband's shoulder.

"I cannot take all of the credit now, your Aunt Abby did help me with some of the stitching." She smoothed a hand down Tali's hair, careful not to mess up her perfectly styled waves. Now, why don't you go upstairs and play for a little while until Grampa Gibbs and Nonno get here." Tali nodded her head and ran to her room, careful not to mess up her dress. "Well, I am glad she likes it. How are the balloons coming Tony?"

"Well, we ran out of helium about 15 balloons ago so I've been blowing the rest up myself. I think we may have went a little overboard on them Zi." The couple looked around the room. There were at least 30 balloons on strings tied to chairs, lamps, and table legs, and more just floating against the ceiling. The remaining balloons that Tony had blown up were scattered around the living room floor. "There have to be at least 50 balloons here."

"Oh my. You may be right Tony. I did not realize I had bought so many. Well, at least the house is decorative yes?"

"Decorative is one word for it." At Ziva's pouty look, he grabbed her hand and eased her onto his lap. "It looks great Zi. And I'm sure once she notices it, Tali's gonna love everything you did."

"Everything we did Tony. And you're right, I guess she was a little pre-occupied with looking like a princess to notice the decorations." She pressed a kiss to his forehead before pushing herself off his lap. "Now come on, let us start working on the food." Tony followed her into the kitchen and they each started working on their separate tasks.

* * *

"Hello hello! Where's the birthday girl?" DiNozzo Senior asked as he entered his sons' home.

"Nonno!" As soon as she heard his voice, Tali came running down the stairs and straight into her grandfather's arms.

"Happy birthday my dear." Senior hugged her tight before grabbing her hand and spinning her around. "Your dress is beautiful Tali."

"Thanks Nonno! Ima made it!" Tali beamed at him before noticing Gibbs trailing in the door carrying presents. "Grampa Gibbs!" She ran to him then as Senior grabbed the presents Gibbs had brought in from both of them and placed them by the fireplace.

"Happy birthday kid." Gibbs said as he pulled her into a hug. Pulling away, Tali grabbed her grandfathers' hands and dragged them into the kitchen where her parents were currently working on dinner. Gibbs walked up next to Ziva as she was chopping fresh vegetables for the homemade pizza. "You made her dress?"

"With some help from Abby, but yes."

"You did good Ziver." Gibbs pressed a kiss to the side of her head, knowing she would know he wasn't just talking about the dress.

"Thank you Abba." Ziva swiped at her eye, blaming her pregnancy hormones and the cutting of onion for the tears escaping her eyes.

"So my dear, what can we help with?" Senior asked, looking around at the few remaining decorations that needed to be put up.

"Well, if you would like to hang up the banner above the fireplace and finish placing the balloons, and Gibbs if you could hang up the piñata in the tree in the backyard while Tony and I finish with the pizzas." The two men went straight to their assigned tasks as the clock ticked down to when the rest of the party guests were to arrive.

* * *

"Looks like she had fun." Tony and Ziva were curled up together on the couch, Tony with his feet pro looking down at the floor where Tali was laying sound asleep surrounded by her new stuffed animals and balloons. "I don't think she's been this worn out since the vacation."

In addition to Senior and Gibbs, Abby, Ducky, the McGee and Palmer families, and ten of Tali's friends came to their house for the party. For almost three hours, the adults watched twelve six-year-olds hyped up on cake, ice cream, and candy, run around the house and play soccer with all of the balloons on the floor. Not long after their guests left, Tali passed out in her new sleeping bag in the middle of the living room floor while her father and grandfathers as they worked on cleaning up the house and Ziva, banned from the kitchen, kicked her feet up on the couch and dozed off. After the house was completely clean and Senior and Gibbs had left, that's how he found his wife, sitting up and leaning her side against the back of the couch with her feet stretched out in front of her, asleep. He silently squeezed in between her back and the arm of the couch, curling his arm around her shoulder as she slowly opened her eyes.

"She really is out of it. Unlike this one." Ziva grabbed Tony's hand and placed it on her belly where their unborn child was currently restless.

Ziva rolled her eyes, having given up on getting Tony to stop calling it a girl when they didn't know the gender yet. Tony held his hand on her stomach, waiting for the usual kick that came to his hand when their unborn child was restless. "Oh. That was a powerful one. She's really practicing her ninja moves tonight isn't she?"

"Oh yes. This one's definitely an active one. Tali didn't kick me this much." Ziva moved around, laying back on the pillow in Tony's lap to get more comfortable as Tony moved his hand with her stomach. "Do you have to keep doing that? You know, the baby seems to kick more when you are rubbing my stomach." His hand still in place where the baby was being active, he felt some more kicks before the baby settled into position and calmed down.

"Yeah, but I'm also the one who can calm her down the easiest." Ziva leaned up to her husband, pressing a light kiss to his lips.

"Well in that case you are excused." Tony leaned back down for a second kiss, this time lingering longer than normal. Ziva reached one hand up and ran it through Tony's longer than normal hair as he ran his under her shirt and over her stomach. They slowly pulled away from one another, going back in for one short peck before leaning back breathless. Ziva brought her hand down from his hair to rub his chest, gathering his shirt in her fist. "I love you Tony."

"I love you too Zi." Ziva tried to stifle a yawn, making Tony smile and lean her up. "C'mon Zi, let's get you and Tali to bed." Ziva just nodded tiredly as she sat up. Tony stood and reached a hand down, helping her up before going to pick up Tali. Following his wife, he carried their sleeping daughter up the stairs and helped Ziva change her into pajamas before tucking her into bed. Turning off the lamp light and leaving Tali's door cracked, they headed to their room to get changed and teeth brushed before laying down facing each other.

"Thank you for all of your help today Tony. It was a wonderful party and I could not have done it without you."

"Of course Ziva. We're married. And even if we weren't Tali is our daughter and I would do anything for either of you, you know that. I think she had fun today."

"She definitely did. I just can't believe this is her last birthday as an only child. This one will be here in just two months and will change everything. I just hope Tali will not feel left out when the baby first gets here."

"I think she'll do great Zi. I mean, she knows things are going to change, but we'll be here for both of them. We'll just have to make sure we each set aside time to spend with her. It's gonna be fine Ziva. And she'll be a great big sister, I have no doubt about it." Ziva took in her husband's words, reaching over to place her hand against his cheek and pressing a kiss to the corner of his lips.

"Thank you Tony. You always know what to say. Goodnight neshama." Ziva rolled over on her back to get comfortable but made sure to keep contact with Tony.

"Goodnight tesoro."

 _AN: "The Stars" is a beautiful song by Lady Antebellum that they wrote for their children._

 _I am SO sorry this chapter took so long. I started my senior semester and it's been kicking my butt. I finally found some time to write so I wanted to get this chapter out and I do have the rest of the chapters outlined so I hope that they don't take as long to get out as this one did._

 _Hope y'all enjoyed!_


	11. Good Time to be Alive

**Good Time to be Alive**

" _It's a good, good, good time to be alive._

 _This world could throw me anything with you by my side."_

 **Saturday, May 25, 2019 – Ziva's baby shower**

"C'mon Zi! Gibbs is expecting us for lunch and we don't want to be late!" Tony yelled up the stairs to his wife who was getting herself and Tali ready to go to Gibbs house for what they thought was just lunch. He and Abby had been planning a surprise baby shower for Ziva for over a month and were able to talk Gibbs into letting them have it at his house. The decorating was left completely up to Abby with the promise that she would keep it a light, neutral theme. Meanwhile, Tony ordered all of the food from one of Ziva's favorite deli's that catered, as well as the cake which Senior promised to pick up and deliver to Gibbs. Now, Tony's job was to get Ziva to Gibbs' without her being suspicious. After five minutes, Tali came running down the stairs, shortly followed by Ziva. They were in matching striped dresses with their hair clipped half-up, Tali's pink with a bow in her hair and Ziva's a dark purple with a white flowy cardigan over top. "Well look at my beautiful girls."

"Thanks daddy! Look, Ima and I match!" Tali hugged Ziva's leg, smiling up at her mother.

"You do don't you." Tony smiled at his daughter before looking up into Ziva's eyes. She was looking lovingly down at their daughter, one arm held by Tali and the other hand laying on her bump. "So, are you two ready to go?" That broke Ziva out of her head and she nodded, telling Tali to go get her jacket out of the coat closet as the D.C. air was still cool. Tony helped Ziva into her shoes and grabbed her purse, leading his family out the door.

* * *

The DiNozzos pulled into Gibbs driveway five minutes late according to Ziva, but right on time according to Tony's plan. Thankfully, everyone else had carpooled and had parked down the street in the opposite direction they had driven in from so that Ziva wouldn't see their cars. He put the car into park and stepped back to open Tali's door before walking around to open Ziva's. Having been told of the surprise that morning, Tali ran ahead into the home and took her place between Gibbs and Senior in the living room. Behind them were Abby, Ducky, Tim and Delilah McGee and their baby, Jimmy, Breena, Victoria and Charles Palmer, three of Ziva's friends from work, Cassie, Mindy, and Amanda, and Abigail Borin.

"Well someone's in a hurry." Tony commented lightly, taking Ziva's hand in his and walking up the sidewalk. Tony opened the door, holding his hand out for Ziva to lead the way. Stepping inside, Ziva was welcomed by several voices yelling surprise. She looked around in awe at her friends and family gathered under a Baby Shower banner and took in the pastel yellow and green balloons that adorned Gibbs living room. Tony's hand came up to rest on the small of her back as he whispered "surprise" in her ear, causing her to turn around and envelope him in a hug, whispering "thank you." Shaking off her shock, she walked the rest of the way into the house, going up to each person for a hug or handshake. As usual, Abby was jumping up and down and wrapped her in an excited hug. Ready to get the party started, Abby ushered her into the kitchen where lunch trays were set up around the room and the cake was placed on the dining room table. Everyone grabbed their plates and gathered around the living room to eat and share light conversation. After eating, the four children went upstairs to their room where Gibbs had filled the room with hand-made toys to keep them occupied and had sleeping bags laid out across the floor in case they got tired. Meanwhile downstairs, the guys were relegated to the basement so all of the women could play the shower games Abby had prepared and the guys could work with Gibbs on putting the finishing touches on the furniture for Ziva's nursery.

Throughout the evening, the mothers shared their pregnancy and labor stories before calling the guys up and the kids downstairs for cake and presents. Abby pulled a kitchen chair strewn with balloons and streamers into the middle of the living room and brought the presents over within her reach. Tony pulled a chair over next to her and Tali came over to hand the presents to Ziva since bending over was no longer possible. Ziva opened bags full of clothes and books, including an NCIS onesie that came from Borin, a "Mommy's Little Ninja" onesie from the McGees, and a light gray onesie with the outline of a bat in the middle. The Palmers had purchased a bag full of newborn necessities including fingernail clippers and diaper cream. After all of the wrapped presents were opened, Ziva was instructed to stay still and not turn around as Tony, McGee, and Gibbs went into the other room where they hid the furniture earlier and carried it into the living room behind Ziva. Tony signaled to Abby that they were done and came around to Ziva's side.

"We have one more present for you Zi. I know that you had hoped this little one could have had the same crib Tali had when she was born, the same one that you slept in as a baby, but it was destroyed in the explosion." Ziva just looked at him and nodded, recalling their conversation almost two months ago when she confessed to him that she didn't want to buy baby furniture yet because she always wanted her children to have the same crib she slept in at her family's farmhouse. "I know you wanted the bed our baby slept in to have meaning, so I called in some reinforcements." Ziva's eyes started getting teary-eyed as she realized the meaning behind his words. "Turn around Zi." Ziva turned around in her chair and gasped at the hand-made crib and matching rocker that had a rich brown stain. There was a white and gray blanket with bears and foxes draped over the front of the crib which held a stuffed brown bear and orange fox. The rocker was adorned with a light gray cushion with two pillows in a dark purple and olive green. Ziva's hand went up to cover her mouth as she stood up and took it all in, looking at her husband then Gibbs.

"You did all of this?" Gibbs just shrugged.

"Can't take all the credit for it. Senior helped too." Ziva turned around and looked at her father-in-law in amazement.

"You, you worked on this too?"

"Well, mainly just the staining and getting the decorations. Gibbs here doesn't have an eye for decorating like I do." Ziva just smiled and walked up to him, enveloping him in a hug before moving to Gibbs.

"Thank you, thank you both so much." She tried hard not to cry but wiped at her eyes as a few tears escaped against her will. "I love it."

"I'm glad Ziver." Gibbs pressed a kiss to the side of her head before she went back to looking at her new furniture.

* * *

It was getting late and guests began heading home, Ziva making sure to stop each one to thank them for coming before they left until eventually only Abby and Senior remained with Gibbs and the DiNozzo family. The men were cleaning up as Abby, Ziva, and Tali began carrying presents out to the car. Tali ran back in to get the bags she could carry but Ziva paused before following her, waiting for Abby put the gifts in the back of their car before addressing her. "Thank you so much for the party Abby. I, um, I did not have one with Tali and now, being back here, with Tony, and being around family. Well it, it really means a lot."

"Oh Ziva of course." Abby pulled her into hug as Ziva tried, unsuccessfully, to hold in the tears, blaming it on the hormones. "I'm so glad you're back and that you and Tony are together and having another baby. This is such an exciting time and I wasn't gonna let it pass without throwing you a shower." As they pulled away, Abby was wiping at her eyes as well, trying not to mess up her makeup. Tali came back out with a small present and placed it in the backseat and this time Ziva and Abby followed to get the rest of the presents.

Thirty minutes later the car was packed and Gibbs house was completely cleaned. Ziva had made her rounds, hugging Senior, Abby, and Gibbs, saying goodbye and thanking them all. "Okay Tali, say goodbye, it is time to go."

"Ima, can I stay at Grampa Gibbs tonight? Pretty please?" Tali looked up at Ziva with big eyes that always made her think of Tony.

"Did you already ask Gibbs?" Ziva looked at her daughter curiously, knowing that the first time she asked to spend the night she had sprung it on her grandfather, although he was never going to turn her down.

"Actually I suggested it Ziver. Give you and DiNozzo a quiet night and I can bring her back tomorrow when I drop this stuff off." Gibbs answered, motioning to the crib and rocker. Ziva looked at her husband and they held one of their famous, eye-only, conversations, silently agreeing with each other.

"Yes Tali, you may stay the night. Just, please make sure to go to bed on time. And Gibbs, please do not let her sleep in too late." Gibbs just smiled and shook his head, remembering the last time Tali stayed over and he unknowingly let her stay up until 2:00 am with him as he worked in the basement. She was so tired the next morning that she didn't wake up until her parents arrived for brunch at 11:00 am. "And Tali, make sure to brush your teeth too okay?" Tali just smiled and nodded. "Okay then. Well, Tony are you ready to go?"

"Sure am Zi." Tony walked up to Senior, Abby, and Gibbs, hugging them each before stepping back next to Ziva. "Thank you all so much for helping me do this for Zi. I couldn't have done it without you." He was met with a series of "of course" and "you're welcome." The couple said goodbye to Tali and waved, walking back out to their car. Tony opened the passenger side door for Ziva before walking around to the other side and getting in. As soon as he got settled and backed out of the driveway, he reached over and laid his hand over hers and, as usual, she turned hers over to clasp their hands together.

"Today was amazing Tony. I really cannot believe you pulled that off. Every time you do something like this I fall in love a little bit more." Ziva pulled their intertwined hands up to press a kiss to the back of his. "Thank you again ahava."

"You are very welcome Zi. You are so very welcome."

 _AN: I had a day off so I got 2 chapters done in one day! I'm pretty happy with myself. "Good Time to be Alive" is also a song title by Lady Antebellum._

 _If you like this story or have any suggestions, please review! It's how we writers get out motivation sometimes, knowing someone actually likes reading our stories._


	12. Unforgettable

**Unforgettable**

" _It's crazy I remember ever detail but I do, I can still smell your perfume,_

 _Girl that night was just like you Unforgettable"_

 _AN: Flashbacks in Italics_

 **June 3, 2019**

Tony walked past the calendar and stopped in his tracks, doing a double take at the day's date. He couldn't believe he hadn't realized it until now, at 9:00 pm. Tali was already asleep and Ziva was on the couch with a book. Realizing he had to do something to mark the occasion, he ran into the kitchen and searched the refrigerator, luckily finding a bottle of grape juice and some fresh strawberries from the farmers market. Counting that as a success, he moved to the cabinet where there were some dark chocolate chips stored and popped a bowl full in the microwave, watching them carefully to make sure they melted properly. In between intervals, he grabbed two wine glasses down from the cabinet, filling them each with grape juice, and found a tray, setting the glasses, strawberries, and melted chocolate on it. Grabbing a flower from the bouquet on the table, he carried the tray into the living room as quietly as possible. Ninja senses still intact, Ziva looked up from her book at him as he walked in her field of view.

"Tony, what is all this?" She asked, marking her page and placing her book down on the coffee table.

"This is something I should have done earlier today." He set the tray down on the coffee table in front of her and handed her the flower, sitting down next to her and placing a kiss to her cheek. "Happy anniversary Zi." Ziva tilted her head looking at him in confusion. "June third. It's been three years since we met again."

"Oh Tony." Ziva put her hand up to her mouth in shock, feeling the tears pricking her eyes. "I cannot believe I forgot." He pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, cupping her cheek.

"Well to be honest so did I until I walked by the calendar. Can you believe it's already been three years?"

"Oh my goodness, no. In one way it seems like it was just yesterday, but yet so much has changed since then."

"That's true. I mean, we reconnected, moved in together in Paris, got married, moved back to D.C., now we're having another baby. I gotta tell you though, I remember everything about that day like it was yesterday."

 _ **June 3, 2016**_

 _Tony and Tali had just arrived in Paris after spending two days in Israel. They visited the site where the David family farmhouse once stood and took a walk through the grove. Tony couldn't help but remember the last time he was here with Ziva, planting her "I Will" list just a few rows down, holding in it all of Ziva's plans for a new beginning. Having raced ahead of him, Tali was now standing over the spot containing the list, looking at him with impatience._

 _"Abba, here." She pointed down at the ground and looked back up at him, waving him over. Curious, he walked over to his daughter and looked down at the ground, noticing the ground had recently been disturbed. Not caring about getting his suit pants dirty, he kneeled and began digging with his hands, Tali following suit. Deeper than he remembered, they finally reached the box and pulled it out, dusting it off with their hands. Holding the box in his hands, he sat back on the dusty ground, smiling when Tali sat next to him. He ran his hands over the top of the box before flicking the clasp and opening the lid, pulling out a piece of paper with Ziva's handwriting. His eyes began to fill with tears when, instead of seeing her list like he expected, his eyes instead landed on a letter addressed to him. Heart in his throat, he began reading the letter out loud._

 _"Tony, I hope you never have to see this but if you do, please know that I never wanted you to find out this way. I wanted to tell you about Tali, our baby girl, from the beginning but the threat was too great. Please know that Tali knows and loves you Tony. I know you will take care of Tali and love her like I do. I always made sure she would know her Abba for whenever the day came for you two to finally meet, I only wish it was under better circumstances than this._

 _I had to make plans for Tali and I in case they ever caught up to us and, if you are reading this, then that means they have. Tali was always safe, I made sure of that. I cannot quite say the same for myself but please trust in me as I trust you to care for Tali._

 _Please make sure that Tali knows Ima loves her and is only doing this to keep her safe. And I love you too Tony, please never doubt that. No matter what happens, I can only hope that you will forgive me._

 _Love,_

 _Ziva_

 _P.S. I certainly was comfy enough."_

 _Tony read through the letter twice, gaining more hope with the last lines of the letter that he had had in days. Tony stood and dusted off his pants, folding the letter up and placing it in his pocket, before dusting off Tali and picking her up as she clutched the box to her chest. Although they were already scheduled to fly out to Paris later in the week, Tony took them straight back to their hotel room and booked a flight out for later that day. He quickly packed their belongings and hailed a cab to take them to the airport where he booked a room at the same hotel he stayed at with Ziva when they were in Paris what seemed like a lifetime ago._

 _They arrived in Paris just after 2:00 am local time and went straight to their hotel. Exhausted, Tony laid a sleeping Tali on the bed, building up pillows on one side of her, and laid down next to her, too tired to worry about changing clothes. He woke up just 5 hours later, still tired but ready to get on with the day. Checking that Tali was still asleep, he gathered his clothes and toiletries and went for a quick shower before getting Tali up, bathed, and dressed. After they were both ready, he grabbed his wallet and got Tali in her stroller and headed out to the bakery for breakfast where he parked Tali's stroller and sat down at the same table he had shared with Ziva. Over thirty minutes and three croissants split between the father and daughter had went by before Tony started getting worried that he read too much into Ziva's letter. Suddenly, a familiar scent wafted over him and he closed his eyes, remembering all too well the way that perfume filled the air around him. Shaking his head to get rid of the hopeful thought, he focused again on his second cup of coffee when suddenly Tali let out a squeal of excitement, making him jerk his head up. He couldn't believe his eyes when the woman that, just days ago, he was told was dead appeared before him looking more beautiful than he could have ever imagined. Her hair was longer than he remembered, down and flowing in the Parisian wind. Gone were the familiar cargo pants and in place were skinny jeans and short black boots and she was wearing a deep purple top that contrasted perfectly with her olive skin. They couldn't help but stare at one another._

 _"Tony." Ziva said with a relieved sigh, looking at him intensely, worried at the reaction she would receive._

 _"Ziva." Tony said as a smile broke out across his face and he stepped closer, raking his eyes over her to make sure she was actually real. He reached out and touched his hand to her cheek, tears pricking at his eyes and hers as they reconnected for the first time in over two years._

" _Ima!" Tali's exclamation broke them out of their trance and they both smiled, shaking their heads at their daughter's timing. Ziva was the first to step away, eager to see her daughter again after being away for so long. She unstrapped their daughter from the stroller and picked her up, kissing her head and hugging her tight. "Ani ohev otach Ima." More tears streamed down Ziva's cheek as she heard Tali say she loved her for the first time in over a week since she had been gone._

" _Ani ohev otach Tali. So much." Tony was watching their reunion from a distance, not wanting to interfere in the tender mother daughter moment. Ziva looked up from Tali to see him watching fondly and tilted her head, inviting him to join in. He rushed over to his family, wrapping his arms around Ziva and their daughter, taking in the moment. He didn't know what tonight, tomorrow, or even the next week would bring, but he knew that right now, he couldn't be happier._

"You know, besides our wedding and finding out about this little one, that day was one of the best days of my life. When I looked up and saw you standing there I almost couldn't believe it was really you. I mean, just a few days earlier I was watching your farmhouse go up in flames and Orli was handing me our daughter and then bam, there you were, right in front of us."

"It was a pretty surreal moment yes? That was the longest I had ever been away from Tali and I had not seen you for over two years so I was very overwhelmed. I just could not believe that there you two were, in Paris, together. It was a moment I had always hoped for but did not dare imagine." Tony pressed a kiss to her lips and pulled her against his side. "I am still impressed at how quickly you got there."

"Well, I was a special agent you know. And you left a pretty good clue. I always knew you were comfy that night." Ziva blushed and looked down as Tony beamed, happy with himself that he made his ninja blush. "I still can't believe Tali led me to your letter. I mean, I'm sure I would've found it on my own and I had already planned to go to Paris but it would've taken longer and I probably wouldn't have known exactly where to go."

"I have no doubt that you would have found me eventually. You always have."

"I've had to search for you a lot haven't I?" He joked, but avoided lingering on the subject. "You left some pretty good clues. I mean, first your scarf and the Paris picture in Tali's bag which are what made me decide to go to Israel and Paris in the first place, then your letter. I didn't know what exactly it was you were trying to tell me everything but I knew they were clues that I had to follow. As much as I tried to control it I always hoped that you were alive. I mean, there was no evidence and nothing added up but yet here was this footage and then there was Tali and I just." Tony trailed off as his throat got tight and tears threatened to spill from his eyes. Ziva turned towards him then, holding his face in her hands.

"I know Tony. And I will always regret that you had to believe I was killed and I will always hate that you had to find out about Tali that way. But after I learned about Kort through Orli that was the only way we could think of to ensure everyone's safety." Ziva thought back to that first night in a Parisian hotel room after their reunion when she explained everything to Tony while Tali was asleep on the next bed.

" _Because of rule three, I knew that you and Gibbs would be doubtful of what you were being told and I relied on that when crafting the plan. Tali and I had been staying in the guest room in the farthest wing of the house, also the easiest to escape unnoticed, and got out right before the attack. Tali's bag was already packed so I grabbed it and a small bag for myself and, along with our other belongings that were already in the car, we left. I carried Tali for almost a mile to where my car was parked before taking her to Orli who had already been given instructions to take her to you whenever the attack came. Meanwhile, I went underground until I got word from Orli that Kort had been killed. I spent another day underground before going to stay with Orli for a day where she set up my transportation to Paris._

 _I spent two days there staying in the same hotel we stayed at on assignment, paying per night and hoping that you would find my message. Finally Orli called me and told me that you and Tali had booked a flight to Paris. I knew it was only a matter of time before you found me, I actually almost got your room number and went to your door last night but I wanted to get myself together before seeing you again. This morning I got to the café as soon as it opened at 7:30 and sat inside at the window watching and waiting. I was there for an hour before I saw you walk up pushing her stroller. I sat there for another thirty minutes taking in your interactions with her and I could tell what a good father you were and it made me regret that this is how you had to meet your daughter. I finally got up the courage to walk outside and up to your table and I couldn't stop myself from staring. It had been so long and I was so nervous and did not know what to say and I was so glad when you didn't notice me at first and it allowed me to just linger until Tali yelled for me. And then you looked up and our eyes met and it was like I was back in the bullpen and in a Somalian cell and on an Israeli tarmac all over again and I could not look away. I was so worried about your reaction but when you hugged Tali and I, I knew that we will, eventually, be okay."_

"And by the way, there was no choice but for me to forgive you Zi. I was kinda upset when Orli first introduced me to Tali. I mean, she told me that you thought it was best for me not to know because you didn't want to disrupt my life any more than you already had. But then after I had time to process everything, I knew that you would never keep her away from me because of that and there had to be a better reason behind it all, although I wish that reason wasn't because someone was always after you."

"Oh believe me, it was not pleasant. First Parsons, then Mishnev, and finally Kort. I did not want to stay away but I am glad that you understand why I had to."

"Of course Ziva. You had to do what you had to do to keep yourself and Tali safe and I cannot thank you enough for that. I'll always miss not having those extra years with you but, because it led to us having this life together, married with a daughter and a baby on the way, well, I can't regret that."

"Well when you put it that way I guess I cannot regret it either." Tony leaned in and captured her lips with his in a long, heated kiss. They pulled away briefly before going back in for a series of short kisses. Finally separating, Tony leaned over and grabbed their wine glasses and poured grape juice in each. Handing one to Ziva, he raised his glass for a toast.

"To seven years as partners, three years together, and many more to come." They clinked their glasses together and took a drink before settling back against the couch, Ziva leaning against him. Tony pressed a kiss to his wife's forehead and Ziva lifted his hand to place a kiss to the back. "Happy anniversary Zi."

"Happy anniversary Tony."

 _As of right now, it looks like this story will be 15 chapters so we're getting to the end (which also means we're getting closer to the baby!) I've had the ending of this story planned out since I started it so I hope everyone loves it!_

 _A HUGE thank you to DS2010 and Denise3130 for your continued support!_

 _Thanks to Natasha for being my beta on this chapter!_

 _Title of the chapter is "Unforgettable" by Thomas Rhett, a song about remembering every detail from the first moment he saw his wife. I thought it would be fitting for a flashback chapter of Tony remembering when they were reunited._


	13. Home

_**AN: I cannot apologize enough for how late this chapter is! I started writing this in December before having wrist surgery, then 2 of my cats passed away, I went through my final semester of college, graduated, and have been in the process of renovating and house shopping.**_

 _ **All Hebrew words/phrases are in italics and will have a translation at the end.**_

 _ **If you've never seen Dirty Dancing, there are some very slight spoilers at the end.**_

 **Home**

" _You feel like home. You're the steady through whatever, the shelter from the storm.  
You feel like home. You're the promise of forever, the place where I belong.  
You feel like home"_

 **June 16, 2019 – Father's Day**

"Shhh _mami_." Ziva whispered as she and Tali entered the master bedroom, Ziva carrying a tray with breakfast in bed while Tali carried his cards. Placing the tray on the nightstand while Tali climbed in the bed, Ziva leaned over and pressed a kiss to her sleeping husband's forehead. "Good morning _neshama_." She tried to suppress her laugh when he sat up sleepily. It was apparent that Tali did not have her mother's resolve when a high-pitched laugh pierced the room.

"Daddy, your hair is sticking up like a porcuswine!" Ziva could hold it in no longer and laughed, reaching over to tousle his hair, though he tried to swat her hand away.

"A porcuswine huh?" Another squeal pierced the room as a now fully awake Tony grabbed his daughter, pulling her down next to him. "I wonder where you learned that from." A glance to his left showed his wife smiling and they locked eyes, fond memories of a long ago undercover op running through their heads. Ziva was the first to break their gaze, looking away sheepishly as Tony cleared his throat. His attention was quickly drawn to his other side where Tali was smiling brightly as she held out a hand-made card.

"Happy Father's Day daddy!" He accepted the card, blue with a drawing of their family on the front, and listened intently as Tali began explaining who each figure was. She started by pointing to a tall figure with long hair and a circle for the stomach with a smiley face inside. "This is Ima and baby. This is me," she moved to the short figure with curly hair before landing on the tallest figure with short, spikey hair. "And this is you!"

"What a wonderful drawing princess! I love it!" He pressed a kiss to Tali's forehead before setting the card on his nightstand. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome daddy! Look, me and Ima made you breakfast!" At Tali's words, Ziva picked up the tray filled with stacks of strawberry and chocolate chip waffles, bacon, fruit, and a pitcher of fresh orange juice and set it on Tony's lap before walking around the bed and sitting next to Tali. Breakfast was enjoyed in leisurely in bed before they started their Father's day activities.

Since the family spent the previous day with Senior and Gibbs, per Tony's request, Father's day was spent at home on the couch in pajamas with popcorn, pizza, and ice cream, watching movies. Tony selected a variety of Pixar movies for their marathon, _The Incredibles_ 1 and 2, _Toy Story_ 1, 2, and 3, and _Brave_ , wanting to include at least one princess movie for Tali. Although _Moana_ would always be her favorite, Tali greatly enjoyed _Brave_ and Tony even found himself liking the princess movie. Ziva had wanted to include _Finding Nemo_ but Tony claimed it would make their marathon too long. Finding it odd that Tony would turn down the addition of a movie, even an animated one, Ziva later realized that the movie about a father protecting his son after the mother was killed, even if they were fish, hit too close to home to a man who found himself in a similar situation just a few years prior.

* * *

After putting Tali to bed, Ziva and Tony sat cuddled on the couch watching Ziva's current favorite movie, _Dirty Dancing_. Tony's hand was resting on her belly, his thumb running back and forth over the baby's spine. "Can you believe there's only three weeks left until this little one gets here?" Ziva taps the back of his hand with her finger.

"Ah, but it will be here before you know it Tony. Along with the diapers, the middle of the night feedings, the constant crying. They may be cute but babies are a lot of work."

"And I'm looking forward to every minute of it Zi." She gives him an incredulous look, arching one eyebrow and pausing the movement of her thumb on the back of his hand. "No I'm serious. I mean, I didn't get to be there for Tali from the beginning and I'm not saying this to make you feel bad about your decision but it's the truth and, well, I know I can't go back and make that right but I want to try to make up for it now. For myself, for this baby, and for you. I will be there for everything Ziva, I never want you to think you have to do this for yourself. We're a family now and family means no one gets left behind." Ziva smiled, blinking back tears at his words.

"Anthony DiNozzo, did you just quote _Lilo and Stitch_?" He smiled and shrugged.

"Well, Tali does love that movie."

"Ah-ha, I believe it is not just Tali that loves that movie."

"Okay, guilty as –" He was cut off by Ziva smacking his shoulder in excitement.

"Shhh Tony, it is my favorite scene." She turned her full attention to the screen just in time to see Johnny walk up to the table and declare that " _Nobody puts Baby in a corner."_ Knowing she would be fully immersed in this scene, he kept his eyes on her, watching as she mouthed the words along with the characters. As always, she got excited when the dance scene began and cheered when the lift was a success. After the last lines of the movie were spoken and the main characters were back on the dance floor he stood and pulled her up with him.

"Just dance with me Zi." He pulled her in as close as he could with her eight month belly and softly sang the words of the song to her as Patrick Swayze's character mouthed them to Jennifer Grey's Baby. "I've had the time of my life, and I owe it all to you." Ziva smiled brightly and he pulled her in for a soft, lingering kiss. They pulled away slowly before going back in for one more caress. Before getting carried away, they ended the kiss and rested their foreheads together, each trying to catch their breath.

"I really do owe you my life Tony. If it were not for you I do not know where I would be, or if I would even still be alive." She placed her finger over his lips to stop his attempt to protest. "I am serious Tony. Between Somalia, Israel, and then Paris. You have always found me. _Ata habayit sheli_. And I love you so much for it." The finger that was his lips moved up to wipe the tear that escaped his eye while his hands came up to caress her face.

"I love you too Zi. _Ani ohev otach bechol libi_."

"Let us go to bed _yakiri._ "

He kissed her one more time before pulling back, with one hand clasping Ziva's, he used the other hand to grab the remote and turn off the television. Hand in hand, the couple walked to their bedroom, both falling asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillows.

 **Translations:**

 _Mami – sweetie/honey_

 _Neshama – darling (literally "My soul")_

 _ata habayit sheli – You are my home_

 _ani ohev otach bechol libi – I love you with all my heart (male to female)_

 _Yakiri - Darling_

 _ **So this chapter took a more serious turn than I was originally planning but it started writing itself so who was I to object**_ _ **.**_

 _ **Please review, they really do help fuel me to finish.**_

 _ **A big thank you to AliyahNCIS who sent me a ton of Hebrew phrases to use! All Hebrew words/phrases in italics with a translation were provided by AliyahNCIS. If you haven't read Aliyah's stories yet go do so, you will not be disappointed. Also, thank you to MashMaiden on Tumblr for giving me a little boost to get started again!**_


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